Echo
by Alex Retzer
Summary: Euphemia Gets another shot at life. Back from the dead will she survive the revelations to follow and become something akin to zero or fail. One shot unless you think its good.
1. Chapter 1

ECHO

_The story of Euphemia's rebirth_

_BY: Alex Retzer_

The cold steel table sends chills through her skin, gradually she awakes from the fog of sleep.

'where am I...where is Suzaku?'

She struggles to sit up, the room is dark save for the single light shinning down on her from the center of the ceiling.

Then it comes. The memories. She was laying in a hospital bed with Suzaku crying.

'why was he so sad? Why...'

A door opens causing Euphemia to pull the white sheet closer to herself.

"My my if it isn't the massacre princess Euphemia Li Britania" The character responds. He didn't look much older then her...until the eye's. Those pale gray eye's that spoke of nothing but cold calculation.

'He's a monster...Any minute I'm gonna wake up and..'

"You'll wake up and this will what? All be a dream?"

"What how could you?"

"Read your mind? Its something I can do, just like bringing the dead back to life is something I can also perform."

"Dead? What do you mean 'dead'. This isn't funny, I princess Euphemia Li Britania command you to release me at once!"

"I can do that. I'm not sure you want me to though...what with my power keeping you alive and all."

"Keeping me..alive?" Euphemia asked, a shocked expression painted on her face.

"You don't remember? No I suppose you wouldn't, After all Geass is a powerful tool...especially depending on which form it chooses to manifest itself in."

"Geass? What are you talking about..I don't."

A sad look came over the man now, he sighed before opening his mouth and speaking the words that would cause her so much pain.

"Remember."

The images flooded her brain. It was like watching a movie, seeing everything through the eye's of the actors on screen but remaining a passive audience member all the same.

"I could order you to do anything and you'd be powerless to resist." She didn't believe Lelouch, he was always one to make big dramatic gestures. She was sure he'd be coming to save her along with Suzaku and Cornelia.

"If I ordered you to kill all the Japanese." As Lelouch spoke these words a bird like shape flapped its way from his suddenly glowing right eye and toward her own. Suddenly her vision had a red tint.

'What's happening to me? I'm in so much pain...Lulu what did you do to me. Please big brother make it stop.' Euphemia thought in vain.

The pain didn't stop, it only increased and then finally ceased. Euphemia took the gun Lelouch had given her and ran out onto the stage.

Euphemia could only watch in horror as she caught sight of a lone man getting up amongst the crowd. Her words, Her orders to the Japanese, to her own soldiers. It was too much, she wanted this to stop. Why was this man making her see these horrible things, obviously he wasn't a good person.

"Princess with everything you see before you, you cast labels and assert I the evil one. Please do look on and witness your own actions."

The voice came from nowhere. She was still in this dream, this nightmare. The immense sadness and horror almost too much to bear. But she would bear it she resolved, because these images weren't real. They couldn't be.

No voice came through to counter her thoughts.

A child's head exploded a few rows back, a soldier's sniper rifle having found its mark. The mother screamed and was soon torn in half as a knighmare's machine gun shot clean through her.

Euphemia couldn't feel anything. This was just like a sick movie for her, one she'd remember for the rest of her life.

"Can't have you losing out on the full cinematic experience now can we princess."

And then she felt it. She felt her hands grip the assault rifle she'd found laying on the ground. She could smell the stench of death and bowels emptying out onto the stadium grounds.

She caught sight of herself in a broken shard of glass. She was smiling.

'No! I couldn't...I would never do this. Why are you doing this? Do you hate me? Are you using me...to get to zero!' Euphemia settled on this inner train of thought knowing that the voice would respond like it had before when she'd thought a question up.

With everything else she was seeing, She wasn't about to question how any of this could be possible.

"No dear princess I don't intend to get Lelouch. Ah look at that, struck a nerve have I? Well don't worry, your brother doesn't know about me. V.V doesn't know either...that little shit stain will get his soon enough believe me."

'Who's V.V.?' Euphemia thought questioningly.

"Never you mind, now watch."

She'd been watching of course. Nothing had paused, their was no remote control, if their was then Euphemia would've changed the channel.

Lelouch was in front of her talking, he continued to talk as he walked past her and then spun around. The gun wasn't plastic, it wasn't something that you could take a hit from and walk away.

'No! He wouldn't! Lelouch would never shoot me, he loves me, he...'

"..."

The bullet exits the gun and time slows down. Euphemia was sure this was the strangers doing, he was drawing out the most horrifying and ridiculous scene for effect.

The bullet came at her, she could make it out and over ten seconds took in her surroundings. Corpses littered the streets and her soldier's were fighting other knightmares.

'Black Knight are here but how could they get here so fast?'

"You ask a lot of question princess. Your getting answers like a damn tidal wave here. Please pay attention will you."

The bullet was inches from her skin.

'Will I...Ahhhhh god why...the pain!'

The bullet entered through her chest and lodged itself deep inside, nicking vital organs along the way. Euphemia could feel the blood leaving her. Her vision remained red. While she heard herself voice the same thoughts she had at this very moment.

'why.'

Then it was over and she was back in this room with him. Still standing tall and seemingly bored.

Euphemia felt something wet and moved her hand to her face.

"I've been crying."

"Yes this entire time you've been balling your eye's out. I'm happy in a way, it shows your still you."

"Why would I be anyone else, how could anyone see those things and not cry." Euphemia stated as her head hung low, trying to hide her emotions from the monster before her.

The sound of foot steps made her nervous. She began to look up when it happened. Her face was buried in his chest as hugged her close to him. Euphemia went rigid.

"I'm not the monster here. Neither is Lelouch but I couldn't just let fate work itself out like this. Its why I brought you back from the dead Euphie, to save the world and your family before its too late." The man said all this before he closed his eye's briefly as if in thought.

'Get away!'

"What the..." The person thought as he was thrown to the ground and Euphemia ran in the direction of the door, the white sheet falling to the ground. A very naked Euphemia began to pound on the wooden door.

"Help! Somebody please help me! Its me Euphemia Li Britania, Please get me out!" Euphemia screamed as loud and unladylike as she possibly could. Her royal upbringing seemed to fall away with the modesty she'd left on the floor. She just wanted to escape the monster in the room.

" You can bang away all you like. If you had the strength of your sibling's you might even make it through the door. You'd just find guards...and guns and all that fun stuff waiting for you. Course they wouldn't need to shoot you." The man said to Euphemia as he gingerly walked to a corner toward the back of the room and picked up something sitting on the floor.

Euphemia's eye's went wide with horror. Perhaps the man had gone to get a murder weapon of some sort.

She spun around and looked at the man as he sat on the far end of the metallic table she'd woken up on.

"Well don't just stand their, get over here! Since you want out so bad, I'll compromise and let you see for yourself. This laptop has a wireless connection. It will tell you everything you need to know."

Euphemia didn't budge, though her hands moved to cover her crotch and breasts from view.

"Oh please like that's hiding anything. Besides when I brought you in, you'd been sitting in the ground for a month. Your eye's looked like goop and you smelled horrible, those delicate s of your looked bloated and diseased."

"No!"

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Your a sick evil little man just like those nobles that always swoon over father or Cornelia trying to win favors." Euphemia revealed her breasts as she pointed an accusing finger straight at the room's other occupant.

"First of all I'm around your height, secondly I could be much larger if I suddenly desired it to be so. I'm very old and very learned in the ways of the world, Geass among the pantheon of powers that exist upon this earth. Your being naïve Just as Lelouch is selfish."

"Shut up! Don't you dare say that about Lelouch!" Euphemia screamed.

"Sorry princess but them's the bricks. Now get the fuck over here." the man said impatiently.

With the come hither gesture of his pointer finger, the man seemed to elevate Euphemia off the ground and pull her to him.

Euphemia felt cold fear well up in her as she could no longer move, she tried in vain to free herself but those cold gray eye's only grew closer. Finally she was plopped down on the steel table, still feeling restrained.

"I'm going to leave now. This computer has access to the web, to official...and unofficial video recordings. Those in case your wondering...for whatever reason, are the video recordings of you gunning down the Japanese. Your brother's made full use of his mistake."

"No...He couldn't...those are fake."

"Maybe so. Kinda hard to troll the entire world though. Britanian reprisals being what they are. Least your father was happy about your escapade. Tootles." The young man said as he faded out of existence before Euphemia's shocked eye's.

Over the next few hours Euphemia had the proverbial cold water thrown in her face. The video's existed along with others. Her funeral for one. Everyone was there, her sister, schniezel. The whole lot.

Her father called her a great patriot and vowed Britanian dominance. Websites and forums outside Britania all called her the massacre princess. She'd stepped out of her sister's shadow, the witch of Britania was nothing compared to the horrors she'd indeed committed.

In the back of her mind she knew it might be a trick...but that line of reasoning had grown weaker with each moment she spent on the web. In her heart she felt this was true. Their had been a monster in the room after all.

It was her.

Eupehmia curled up in a ball on the steel table, the sheet having been recovered. She clung to it for warmth as the tears fell and deep sadness over took her.

Outside the door the man with gray eye's turned to a subordinate.

"Give it time. C.C. Has Lelouch, the black knights and Japanese people their Zero. I'll soon have my Echo to bring into the mix."

With that the man walked off to go inquire about a certain prototype knightmare.


	2. Chapter 2

Walking down the hall without a care in the world, a certain gray eye'd man looked out a nearby observation window.

In the small area beyond the glass stood a dozen knightmares of various makes, all superior to whatever the Brits, Japs or Chinese might throw his way.

Grinning like a mad man he said the words he'd been saying several times before over the past year.

"Soon"

A near by guard looked at him like he grew a second head.

He stared at him and pointed back at the frames.

" Soon. " The smile never leaving his face.

With that done and a guard no doubt having second thoughts about his sanity, the ring leader of this little base decided to go check on Euphemia.

Moving to the door, the man stopped.

"Why am I using a door? Theatrics seem to be in order today."

Poof

And then the man seemingly popped into existence within the room, a few steps from Euphemia's side.

"Rise and shine princess"

"..."

"Not even a 'go away' or 'you bastard' ?" The man inquired.

"Go the away you...you..you bastard!" Euphemia finally belted out, each try rising in volume.

"Well that's not very proper of you is it. Anyway get off that table, you've been their a week now."

Euphemia's eye's went wide.

"Well ok, four days but you'd stay like this a week if I let you."

"I don't want to go anywhere...the world's moved on...along with Lulu."

"You know I'm surprised you Brits managed to conquer the world, what with priorities being what they are. You don't seem to realize you've got Suzaku and Cornelia to consider...along with Nunnally."

"Nunnally! She doesn't know! Please you've got to warn..."

"Warn her? Tell her that her brother is a mass murderer, that he can control people's minds, that you didn't really kill all those people."

Euphemia bit her lip

'Maybe..'

"Maybe? Your brother's a lot of things Euphie but you, you did pull the trigger. Its you the whole world saw give the orders to commence the slaughter. Running up to a blind girl and telling her her brothers bonkers and your somehow alive is just going to make her head explode."

Euphemia looked at him.

"Not literally. Now get out of bed...eventually you'll see them all again but first we've got to build you back up...or better. We have the technology!" The gray eye'd man laughed.

"I'm not leaving. They...I did my part and that's that."

"Ok well that's just like, your opinion princess. And this.."

A flick of the wrist and Euphemia was suspended in air and levitating

"Is mine"

"Gah! Put me down, please I don't want to go anywhere!"

"This crap again? You know the score and your not even the least bit pissed off about any of it? Maybe millions just go join Lelouch and Suzaku in their future grave plots after all." He said as his left hand held his chin in a thoughtful pose.

"Their going to die. Millions..your saying millions will die unless I come with you?"

"No. Around a million will die alongside your brother and your almost lover, you coming along now won't change that."

"Then why should I come with you?"

"Because maybe just maybe working with me is the way to change this fate. This incomplete requiem."

He was hopeful. Euphemia's going to say yes and come to him and everything can start progressing steadily.

"Your a liar."

Or maybe not.

"Hmm. How so?"

" Your just saying what I want to hear...just like all the others. You don't even need me, you could be speaking with Lulu or my sister or..or even Suzaku. Why a princess..why..why the massacre princess of all people?"

The gray eye'd man's right eye began to twitch.

"Well you see its because..you know what? Fuck it."

"What are you.."

"Yoink"

With the flick of his hand the princess was next to him suspended in air.

What he didn't see coming was Euphemia's foot connecting with his face. The resounding crunch noise gave way to a predatory smile upon his face.

Euphemia's face turned from one of smug triumph to weary trepidation.

"Well in that case."

The man's right hand fell to his side and Euphemia toppled to the ground.

"Ow"

With the snap of his fingers the floor beneath himself and Euphemia glowed a pale green. In the blink of an eye were gone.

Above an ocean two figures suddenly popped into existence. Euphemia and her captor looked at each other then Euphemia looked down at the vast ocean below and made to lunge at her captor for support.

Pop

And just like before the man was gone. Appearing ten yards away, mischievous smile painted onto his face.

'How did he..'

"Gravity you spoiled bitch."

"What! How dare you..ahhhhh!"

Euphemia fell into the ocean below with a resounding splash.

"Maybe a nice bath will do you some good. Can't have you changing into new clothes smelling like a corpse after all." The gray eye'd fellow laughed.

The laughing promptly ceased after the first minutes of Euphemia not splashing back to the surface.

"I know you can swim...what the actual fuck do you think your accomplishing with this? Oh well, nothing ever worth having came easily."

With a outstretched hand he slowly lifted Euphemia from the depths of the ocean like a conductor leading an orchestra.

The coughing and hacking Euphemia Britannia glistening from the ocean and completely nude came face to face with her savior.

"Now Euphie I know that you know how to swim. Even weakened, an animal will struggle to survive when there is no hope. Mind telling me why your instincts dont seem as sharp?"

"..."

"If you give me some line about just wanting to die then you can forget it."

"..."

"Listen...Euphemia Li Britannia, you have a chance to be something more. Work with me and we can have a shot at fixing things, it won't be perfect and you'll not happily salute every order or requested foisted on you. You'll hate me...but you'll also see I'm not all bad."

"..." Euphemia just continued to look at him in a seemingly dazed state.

" Your not your brother, he would have jumped at the chance to change things. CC's given him power and a docile side kick. I'll make no such contract. Your sister despite what you may think is kind've a psycho when she's pushed to the edge, her racism not taken into account. Suzaku killed his own father for crying out loud and still thinks siding with his people's enemies is the way forward."

Euphemia's eye's were wide with shock.

"Didn't know about that huh? Well its true, you can tell I'm being on the level here, I have no reason not to be."

Euphemia smiled.

'I'm getting through to her!' The man thought with relief.

Then she opened her mouth

"Wave."

"What?"

Suddenly a massive wave made it presence known behind the grey eye'd man. A quick backward glance his only warning.

"Shit." The man said before being hit full force by the giant wave. The water seemingly buried both the magician of Geass tricks and his pink haired charge.

**AN**: Thanks for the reviews. Its literally the only thing pushing this story forward. So thank you to the readers and reviewers alike. If you like this, want something changed or think you have a really cool idea you'd like considered for inclusion, then by all means leave it in a review.


	3. Chapter 3

The coughing and hacking of Euphemia as she spit up still more water could be heard for several yards, if anyone had been around to listen.

'Why aren't I dead? That man's trying to use me to get to Lelouch and Father...and..and after everything I've done for them their just using me. Just a pawn. Poor stupid Euphie.'

Euphemia felt her muscles strain due to inaction. She slowly pushed herself up off the sandy beach she found herself on.

Where was she? The realization that she'd avoided death again but possibly taken her captor down with her was a real boon to her spirit.

"Oh Suzaku where are you? Do you blame me for killing all those people..for letting Lelouch use me like that? Look at me talking to myself, maybe I came back wrong."

She had died their was no way around it. Maybe if she was more like her sister or brother she'd have denied it but the proof was their. The man hadn't left anything back...and the truth had her wishing for a lie.

She could still remember Lelouch's broadcast.

Her memory drifts to the image of zero addressing throngs of reporters at a conference.

"People of the of Japan we delivered justice this day. With the death of Euphemia Li Britania we've shown the world that not even Britanians will escape the consequences of their murderous actions. The Massacre princess slaughtered the Japanese people, lured them into a trap through kind words and a smile."

She'd been so upset. The first time she saw the recording it hadn't seemed real, she hadn't wanted to hear her brother telling those lies. The ease with which he told them. The way he'd been at their last meeting, shoving that damn plastic gun in her face and telling her his plan to destroy peace. He'd wanted to use her, to make her the villain and him the hero.

'Lulu did you ever really care about me?' Euphemia thought as she finally rose to her feet and turned to see the ocean behind her. Facing forwards once more she resolved to find shelter and hopefully some form of clothing deep within what appeared to be a tropical island of some sort.

After several minutes of walking and still no contact with...anything. No locals, no big animals or any suggestions as to where she might be.

"Well at least that creepy man isn't with me."

Somewhere far removed from the island, in an underground bunker a white lab coated scientist continued to look over the modifications to their masters latest plan.

"You really think this thing will be able to take down the Lancelot? I mean these things are bad ass and everything but your not gonna take down the world with a handful of frames...over powered as they are." A technician commented to his colleague as he finished applying the paint job.

The other man just looked back down at him with a grin.

"Yes, its true we only have a handful of frames but zero started out with less."

"Zero was a tactical genius and Britanian prince. Besides I've heard the princess isn't even trained to fly these damned things Hanz."

"Then you two shall help teach the young lady how its done. Should be like riding a bike...or close relative. Royals being historically depraved as a rule of thumb." a voice behind them said aloud.

Instantly both men turned around and saluted.

"Sir we thought you were out with princess Euphemia. Where is she?"

"Traipsing around a pacific island with no hope of rescue for miles around. In that time maybe she'll reflect on the opportunity we've given her." The gray eye'd man said.

It was then that the two scientist turned part time mechanics quirked their heads in unspoken question as to why on earth their boss was dripping from head to toe and smelling of the ocean.

"The princess decided to hit the surf, dragging me along with her for shits and giggles it seems. Now ignoring my wet clothes, the fact you two carry on like a bunch of irregulars while on duty and doubt our future operative. How is everything progressing?" The gray eye'd man said in a sarcastic huff.

"Sorry sir. As I was just saying, zero is a tactical genius par excel-lance but we believe our prototype tenth generation frame should be worth a whole army of his black knights."

"Really? A whole army? I mean I know I asked for the moon but I didn't think you'd shoot all the way to Pluto! Does it also have a vending machine that dispenses erotic novels and energy drinks in abundance? Because with your brown nosing you might as well go the extra mile Fritz."

"But I...the Reaper mark one is more then a match for some ragtag army of Glasgow's or cheap Chinese crap. Its not brown nosing to believe in the seemingly impossible."

"No one ever got anywhere by belief Fritz. That boy you spoke so highly of just now, he's out living a fairytale courtesy of his pops. The Black Rebellion fell to pieces and the organization is nothing without him."

"..."

"You have something to add Hanz."

"Thank you sir. Fritz may be overly optimistic but this creation, the mark one. Its beyond anything they'll expect to face in.."

"Did you say mark one?" The gray eye'd man said. Feeling a headache coming on.

'This is just great. Next thing you know I'll be called by my initials or develop an unhealthy obsession with pizza'

"Mark one? Are we riding on the coat tails of the Guren now?"

"...Its not set in stone sir. We could use a different designation if you'd like."

"I do like. This prototype will be called beta, its just a test model after all. Your mass production model will be the alpha. Then again you could just drop names or numbers and use simple letters, A, B and C. If they did this with wars we'd be up to Z by now." The gray eye'd man stated without conviction for either.

"Yes, your probably right sir."

"Course I am. The shit I've seen on this world, you have no idea. But back to why I'm here."

"Yes of course. The Reaper Beta is equipped with a float system capable of three thousand feet. It can stay in the air for up to an hour though we're trying for two."

"Be happy you've managed an hour more then most any frame on the planet. What about weapons."

Fritz jumped in now.

"If I may bos...sir. The Reaper Beta is equipped with a beam scythe, and one heavy cannon capable of firing one hundred and twenty high impact depleted uranium rounds."

"Ah yes. Uranium. You know I'll be bringing a young Britanian girl your way gentlemen. Once I know Echo's with us, it will be safe to snatch the girl up. Rushing a reunion would just bring drama to our little base."

"You don't mean..." Hanz stated.

"What do you mean I don't mean? Who else would I be talking about. Girl went bat shit crazy and used her noggin to set the world on fire. I'd rather we had that spectacle'd harlet then Lelouch or Schniezel."

"Still...she's really young. She won't understand what we're doing."

"Won't understand? Gentlemen when I plucked you two out of your respective hells and told you the stakes, you caught on quickly enough."

"We were different...hell the whole world was."

"Ah yes and when V.v decided to play god along with his brother, when even before that Geass users began to muck up the natural order of things. I still remember meeting you Hans, you were just a Prussian engineer back then."

"I remember it well. My mother had cancer and you cured her of that affliction."

"Yes but you forget I also showed you how things were supposed to play out. Napoleon defeated Prussia in 1806. Six years after that Moscow was in his sights." The gray eye'd man began the explanation.

"But rather then freeze to death in snows of winter my people's adversaries triumphed over russia when its czar suddenly changed strategy in the middle of the war, getting himself killed alongside most of his army in the second battle of Smolensk." Hanz finished.

"But you wouldn't listen when I tried to hold you back, you were so sure of yourself, so convinced that killing napoleon was the right thing to do."

"I was young."

"Your still young thanks to me, but your minds grown up at least."

Old Grey eye's as he was sometimes called by Hans, could still remember giving Hans that north American hunting rifle in Berlin. The shot that hit and should have killed napoleon...had killed him, proved Hanz's undoing. French soldiers had dragged the poor man, then just sixteen to a dungeon to be tortured and beaten for killing their glorious emperor.

Imagine Hanz's surprise when the emperor had recovered from close range shot to the head. Pieces of brain had fallen out of the Frenchman's skull, yet a day later he was up and about as though nothing had happened. A strange occurrence...one unnatural and most likely tied to Geass.

Hanz had been guillotined with the emperor looking on and french soldiers cheering his death. Not long after that Napoleon began the plans for what would become his conquest of the British islands. The royals had fled from England and settled comfortably in colonial America, still ruled by the British after the failure of the American revolution.

Of course none of this should have happened.

"You saved my life and dashed my hopes in the same day."

"Hanz, a headless body is not beyond my abilities to restore, though you did smell worse then Euphiemia, what with your body one amongst many in a mass grave.

"You two can talk about Napoleon all you want, won't change the fact the EU's going to lose its war with Britania." Fritz stated at long last tired of the recounting of an old tale he'd heard many times before.

"True. I'll need you two working around the clock, even when Einstein comes aboard. Its ironic that name isn't it."

Hanz and Fritz shared a snicker.

With the inspection done, the gray eye'd magician tel-ported off to Paris to find a suitable tailor. Euphemia couldn't stay naked forever after all.


	4. Chapter 4

As the gray eye'd magician of the supernatural walked through the islands vegetation his mind traveled to the reports he'd seen in Paris of Britanian naval forces amassing for a drive out of Portugal, the only Britanian holding on the European continent.

"So it seems the Brits are readying for a campaign against the EU. No matter, I'll just have echo do some light recon work. A little peep show to their soul, her former comrades will be the monsters the.."

The gray eye'd magician's head quickly pulsed with pain, blood dripping from the wound inflicted by none other then Euphemia.

'So she's been waiting for me...that's unexpected. Time to talk her down.'

"Congrats Euphie. Your waiting here for me to return show's real progress."

"Shut up! I've been here for two days, waiting for someone, anyone to find me...but its just you. Tell me why I can't shake you, why I can't just rest in peace." Euphemia started out angrily but finished in somber tones.

The path he'd taken had lead him in Euphemia's general direction, he could have reached out and sensed her. Tried to do so anyway. Truth be told the magician wasn't god, no matter how old, wise or powerful he may become, he'd always have limits.

Their was a time Euphemia wouldn't have thought of harming another person, least of all laying in wait on the chance they so happened to come a calling.

"You can't get rid of me because I'm your only reason for being. Your destiny and mine are intertwined now you see.."

"My family, my sisters and brothers, their reason enough and so...so is Suzaku." Euphemia stated hotly.

"This bullshit again? Its like we're going around in circles here! I really thought you'd grown, really thought that pink puff ball head of yours possessed a brain."

"Its true...I've done some horrible things. Terrible things but I've had time to think alone on this island while you've been away. Suzaku and my friends, Cornelia will understand most of all, it was all Lulu's doing. That redness I saw...its a power to control others, and I'm done being controlled."

With that rather drawn out explanation that seemed to end the argument, for Euphemia anyway, the princess turned around and began walking out of sight and up a near by ledge.

"Where the fuck do you think your going? This rosy happily ever after dream you've got is just that, a dream. Your being a coward just like Lelouch."

Unbearable pain stabbed into his right hand that he'd been using to support his attempt at sitting up.

"I'm nothing Like Lelouch...and in the end I'm sure he can come back...I just need to talk to father."

"Ha! Your really deluding yourself aren't yo...gah! Jesus what the fuck is wrong with you?"

Euphemia, sweet and innocent Euphemia was pushing the broken, semi sharp branch turned spear further into his hand, hitting dirt and then continuing to borrow into the earth.

Gritting his teeth in a show of pain, the magician's next words tried to appeal to Euphemia's rational mind. The magician hoped she was still rational...though he had his doubts.

"Your living here because of my actions, your standing here and now with me at your supposed mercy. If you kill me you'll just be committing suicide, your only chance to alter things dashed because you allowed your emotions to get the better of you."

Euphemia stopped pushing the crude spear into her opponents hand, by now its had gone a good eight inches to a foot into the ground. She hoped it would pin him down long enough for what she had to do.

"I think your lying. Lets find out." Euphemia said coldly.

'Well this is new. Shouldn't be surprised though. One traumatic event, One action and a person is driven to become someone else just to survive. The only question is weather this is stress or the real Euphie, the evolving persona risen from the ashes.'

"But do you really want to take that chance? I've got this shop I want you to visit in Paris, I've already had the tailors create you a new get up. Maybe check out the Eiffel Tower while we're their for the hell of it."

"Sorry, I don't think your going anywhere...not after this."

'What is she going to do?'

The sound of labored breathing and exertion could be heard as Euphemia rolled a large rock, or rather flipped it with great difficulty, pushing more then lifting.

The magicians eye's grew wide.

'Well Fuck. This just isn't my day. So much for a Friday night out on the town.'

The rock finally began to rise near his head, the magician pulled on the arm trying to will it free, flesh and muscles being torn as still more blood spilled out of the messy wound.

"Nooooooooooooooooo!" The magician said dramatically as the rock fell onto him, its approach some how painfully the slow for him, the seconds seeming to drag on. The gray eye'd magician resisted the sudden burst of memories...the dejavu palpable.

The sickening crunch, the gurgling and finally the limbs going still. Euphemia sat on the rock and attempted to press it down further, her eye's hadn't focused on the object of her wrath, not when he was speaking. But now with him dead she stared at the blood...so much blood, her eye's going wide in realization.

"What...What have I done. I'm...I'm not a monster..I don't do this kind of stuff." She said aloud, realizing how stupid this looked, how the man couldn't hear her...or anyone again for that matter, she internalized it.

'Guess he was wrong after all. I'm so relieved. The idea of killing this man is repulsive...yet..'

Euphemia looked down at her hands.

' These hands know how to murder even if my mind doesn't...didn't. The bullets at the stadium, those shots were mostly hits, how many of them proved fatal. Lelouch's joke...oh if only she could believe it was a joke, that everything after words was an act by Lulu...yet the opposite could be true. He's lied to me, the JLF didn't commit suicide I'll bet.'

Euphemia kept pondering these thoughts as she came to a nearby waterfall, the small pond being her source for bathing and catching food. She'd see about fashioning some clothes eventually, she hadn't a clue how to do so though. She'd been coddled and it was showing...Euphemia weather a mass murderer or a petty one, hadn't a clue how to create something out of nothing, she was still the little sister, the poor princess.

Her hand became a fist and she hit the ground, tears welling up in her eye's. A cocktail of self loathing and anger took over.

'Like they ever bothered to include me anyway, Cornelia didn't approve any of my decisions. Didn't even try to salvage what I was doing for the Japanese. It was always some other time with her when I needed her the most, if I said the wrong words she'd just dismiss me.'

With a yawn Euphemia decided to head to a nearby cave she'd used for shelter, the storm clouds over head promised to bring weather to match her predicament.

Bleak

**AN: **How's the story going? Any idea's for Euphie's new get up or the knightmares? Please Review to let me know how you liked the tone of this small update. Something more drawn out is coming up but I have to close and open at work...so I don't know when I'll write next.


	5. Chapter 5

She was in a garden with Nunally, Lelouch and Cornelia. All of them children just as they had been before the wars and all the death that would come after.

"Who's gonna marry big brother first."

"I will! Right Lulu? We'll be together forever and ever."

"Sure thing Euphie but you have to do something for me first."

"Anything for you Lulu!"

"Please kill all the Japanese." Lulu said his face turning into a sickening smile as small horns began to grow out of his forehead, the tugging on her sleeve the only force pulling Euphie away.

"What is it Nunnally?" Euphie said turning her head.

Nunnally was saying something but the words seemed garbled until the end of the sentence.

"...saw what you did Euphie."

"What I did? Why are your eye's closed Nunna, please open them up its not hide and seek.."

"But you took my eye's. Give em back please."

Nunnally's eye's opened to reveal empty sockets.

Euphemia jumped back, landing with a dull thud on the grass as she tripped over herself from moving too fast.

"Guess you can't give em back. Hmmmm...can I have theirs then?" Nunnally said pointing to the side, Euphie's turned slowly until her gaze widened in horror at the sight of corpses...children s mangled bodies.

Nunnally walked over to the pile and pulled a young boys eye's out, the horrific scene made worse as the dead boy began to scream. Nunnally just laughed.

"Your really loud aren't you ." Nunnally spoke in a childish voice, the sick horror, the nonchalant way this was all unfolding shock Euphemia to her core.

"Oneesama stop her please!" Euphemia said turning to Cornelia, her sister was sure to help.

The slap across the face burned her cheek.

"How dare you use that foul language around Lelouch and Nunnally." Cornelia said her face appearing contorted with barely concealed rage.

"But I...she's hurting those people!" Euphemia said as her voice cracked.

"Silly Euphemia those just numbers. Now how about the worlds best emperor makes you your favorite strawberry shortcake. Just need to get some kindling first." Charles Zi Britannia said appearing behind her.

She turned around.

'He looks just like Lelouch...only worse.'

The man before her was her father but his face sported long horns and insane grine. As he turned to head toward the pile Euphemia took note of the shovel in his hands.

"Father no! Stop!"

The ground near her caved in and caught flame, like a charcoal pit without the coal. The emperor casually shoveled up small children and dumped them into the flames.

"Why did you do it?" A baby asked from the fire.

"...I didn't. No I didn't do this."

The whole family laughed happily with smiles on their face, sick unnatural smiles that didn't belong. This whole situation didn't belong in this world.

"But my dear you gave us this catch, don't you remember."

"I...I don't. I can't remember any of it."

"Sorry your forgetting things sister but you really shouldn't push yourself so hard. Let the grown ups run things." Cornelia said in a sing song voice of condescending arrogance.

"Nonsense, my children all helped with this project, we all did."

Euphemia could see more people seemingly appear out of nowhere like ghosts, her mother, cousins, Marianne the flash among them.

"Oh Marian your so cool." Cornelia gasped in star struck awe.

"Why thank you Cornelia, how's the knightmare handle?"

'Cornelia doesn't have a knightmare...not at this age.' Euphie thought in confusion. The more this all played out the more she hoped this was a joke.

"Wonderful your murder-ship! I've finished my home work on the middle east and Japan. May I please take the test?" Cornelia boasted.

"hmmm. I don't see why not. You scored perfectly on those assignments after all." marianne cooed.

Marian the flash now took a sack labeled Area Eighteen and Area Eleven. The names japan and middle east federation were crossed out in blood red ink...or so Euphemia hoped it was ink. Marian proceeded to dump the sack's contents onto the ground, bodies falling out in an endless stream.

Euphemia saw the man she'd shot with the plastic pistol among them. The pile of dead bodies topped off by the JLF commander she'd seen to have supposedly committed suicide.

"whew, you really did a fantastic job Cornelia! Now for your test." Marian the flash said with macabre cheerfulness as she took an empty sack labeled 'European Union and Chinese Federation'.

"what..how..how can you all do this to these poor people!" Euphemia screamed. She wanted to know why her family had done these horrible things, why she was being patted on the back and told she'd been as barbarous.

"Poor Euphie. Your such an airhead. Lelouch."

"Yes mother?"

"Give your sister her present please."

"Ok mom. Here you go Euphie."

Lelouch handed her the box, colored in white with a pink bow on it for effect. Lelouch always knew how to take advantage of things like that, Euphie's favorite color being an example.

"Oh...ok. Thank you Lelouch."

"Open it."

"I...I dont want to."

"We'll open it together then." Lelouch says begins to open the box for Euphie. Euphia's hands don't move though. The smell of burning flesh making itself known. Her father's insane laughter echoing in the backround.

Euphemia takes the top of the box off to reveal a gun. The plastic weapon Zero had given her at the stadium.

"This...This is.." Euphemia stuttered.

"Great? I know! I had it all planned out Euphie, right from the start." Lelouch said before pointing to a spot outside of Euphi's peripheral vision.

Euphemia turned and found herself stareing at Suzaku, fully grown and smiling as ever. The man's forhead sporting a tattoo with the number eleven inscribed upon his flesh.

"Suzaku..why did you."

"Euphie I..."

Suzaku's chest exploded out as the sound of a rifle could be heard.

"Suzaku!" Euphemia screamed and began to run toward him as he fell but stopped short gasping at the sight of his attacker.

'Its me!' Euphemia realized. She'd killed him.

The Euphemia staring back at her wasn't a child though, it was her as she'd been at the stadium, dress coated in blood, rifle in hand and a smile on her face.

"Please help me kill all the Japanese." Euphemia's doppelganger asked with cheer as her smile revealed pointed teeth, blood flowing out from between them. She was a monster.

"Euphie please we can...go back to school." Suzaku gasped out as his life left him.

"Please stop! Make it stop!"

"Oh are you a friend to the Japanese?" The older Euphemia asked now, a look of puzzled confusion written on her face.

"Yes...He's my friend. I love him!" Euphemia cried as she fell she rushed to Suzaku's body and held it close.

"Your special administrative zone was a success princess. Japan is really free now and its all thanks to you." Suzaku said in admiration before snatching the gun Euphemia thought she'd left in the box from her hand and put a bullet in his brain. The blood splatter paining young Euphie's face red.

"...He...He...Free?"

Then her older doppelganger spoke.

"Naughty little girl it looks like you renounced your title. If your just a commoner and I'm a princess then you won't mind me doing this. Its your place after all."

With that Euphemia's older self turned the rifle on her and pulled the trigger.

Euphemia Li Britannia's scream could be heard from every corner of the island that night.

On the beach a man sat by a fire he'd built for himself. Looking up at the sky he spoke to seemingly no one.

"I could rush to her side but she'd think I caused that dream of hers. Who knew princess could become so unhinged?"

A moment of silence passed before he continued.

"Probably something she ate. Alexander the Great was the same way. Now sod off while get some beauty sleep."


	6. Chapter 6

"Well This is going to either blow up spectacularly in my face or produce results...probably messy one's too." The magician opined aloud.

The island had played host to Euphemia and her savior, if one could think of him as such, for three days straight. This was the fourth day she'd stayed on the island, and it was one day too many for the grey eye'd magician.

'She's going to come with me and that's all there is to it. This show needs to get on the fucking road, the fellowship never stopped to mope after all.' The magician thought, the works of Tolken being some of his favorites. The author had signed the first copies of the books, which came about with generous funding from the magician.

Stepping forward with some trepidation at what he may find, the magician came to the caves entrance. The early morning sun illuminating the world around him, one that needed Euphemia to stay asleep if it ever wanted to get its bearings back.

He sniffed the air. The putrid stench of human waste wafted to his nostrils.

'Throw a civilized person in the woods and they become barbarians. Mustn't delay then.'

Creeping up to the sleeping form of the princess he observed her nude form, the rise and fall of her chest, the once beautiful pink strands of hair now a tangled mess. She was curled in a ball, obviously the cold of the night had gotten to her.

'Anyone else would have just taken my clothes...I mean what's a dead guy gonna need em for?' The magician mused. She could have prevented her nudity with a little grave robbing...if she'd hadn't just left him to get eaten by wildlife. The magician was slightly offended when he thought about it.

' I bring her back to life, offer to give her life a real purpose and she murders me without so much as burial on some shit hole island in the pacific. This calls for some swift justice!'

The swift intake of breath was all the warning anyone would have had, Euphemia unfortunately was blissfully enjoying the ignorance of sleep.

"WAKE THE FUCK UP!" He screamed inches from her face.

The princess jumped back and screamed like wise in terror.

"Gahhh! Who...How are you.."

"Does an immortal have to choke a bitch?" He said with crazed eye's before stepping back with dramatic flourish, hand on his chin as if in thought. The prompt snapping of his fingers said he had the answer, which also happened to be as Euphemia began to make a move to run.

"Gotta ya bitch!" The gray eye'd man said as he grabbed Euphemia by the throat, not enough to really cut her hair, just enough to hold her in place. He really was stronger then he let on, which helped immensely given that no one would think he or Euphemia were much of threat. Euphie would prove them wrong herself...in time.

Euphemia's eye's bulged wide with horror.

'He's going to kill me...but..but he should be dead! I killed him myself...unless..unless he can just come back to life.' Euphemia thought.

With a green glow beneath them appearing, Euphemia and her so called savior vanished.

**PARIS, FRANCE, EU. **

The two popped into an ally, the magician quickly released Euphemia.

'I'll never get used to him doing that..' Euphemia thought as she nearly collapsed on the ground, gasping for the sudden abundance of air available to her.

"Give it time pinkie."

"Pinkie? I'm Euphemia Li Britania and you'll..."

"Show you respect? Ha! You smashed my head in with a giant rock after you stabbed the shit out of my hand, really you should be thrilled you've been knocked down to just 'pinkie'."

"hmmph" Euphemia grunted as she turned her head away somewhat to show her feelings on the new title.

The black night of the Paris sky was altered by the existence of so many lights in what had been the heart of Napoleon's Empire and birthplace of the European Union. Only the Britanian capital held a greater degree of grandeur.

"Its so bright." Euphemia observed.

"What? Oh yeah, I suppose it is...but since its late"

"Late? I just woke up."

"Yes Pinkie but these things called time zones are a really confusing beast." The magician said using air quotes to drive home his point. Euphemia for her part just ignored the jab and asked the question that was on her mind.

"Where are you taking me, where are we?"

"Oh that's right...you were sheltered. Given that this is an alley, I wouldn't expect you to drink in Paris's sights and sounds. Just stay close to me and we'll run across to that shop over their."

"But...But I'm naked!" Euphemia screeched.

The magician looked at the sky and counted to ten as he simultaneously massaged his forehead, a headache not long in arriving.

"Yes Pinkie, the world can see everything and at last have the answer to the age old question of weather Euphie's carpet matches her drapes."

"My carpet?"

"..." The magician just turned around and stared at her. The girl really was too niave and sheltered sometimes. Where all the royals like this? Well he'd been murdered by her so he supposed it was progress of a sort.

"You haven't had a razor to trim that bush between your legs. Nice to know your a natural pinkie, pinkie." The magician stated, smirking at her shocked expression. Without another word he faced forward and began walking to the entrance to the alley.

"You shouldn't be looking their! You...You pervert!"

"Says the girl who played doctor with her half brother."

"...how did you know...we were just kids."

"Didn't have a clue Pinkie, now get over here and when I say run, you and me bolt for that door."

Euphemia rushed over and peered over the gray eye'd magicians shoulder.

"Won't we stick out...the shop's sure to throw us out."

"You might stick out if you don't move your ass fast enough, assuming someone see's us then we'll just look like a couple of crazy lovers going to buy some clothes."

"As if I'd ever have anything to do with you."

"Feeling's mutual pinkie. Now when we get over their the sign will say closed but the doors unlocked, I've got a friend in back, she runs the whole operation. You'll like her, she's good with fashion."

"What about the police...if they find out we're going in their with the lights off."

The magician looked at her suspiciously. Pretending to think after his gaze left her he finally spoke.

"The police are men, mortal corruptible men who would sell their mother's for a bit of coin, especially roman one's. We're covered from every angle...figuratively speaking."

His chuckle infuriated Euphemia to no end. Just as she was about to retort, the magician bolted and she was following against her better judgment.

'Why am I following him? All...All these people can see my body...why the hell didn't he give me a prison jumpsuit or something?' Euphemia thought as she attempted to hid her intimate area's from being displayed. She was happy few people seemed out in this part of the city, covering the distance to the door red faced from embarrassment, she was pleased to see her captor was holding the door for her.

'Guess even he's capable of being a gentlemen'

As she crossed the threshold into the shop, the gray eye'd magician was quick to follow behind, closing the door as he did so.

"Where is your friend?" Euphemia asked as her eye's adjusted to the dark.

"Back their somewhere, follow behind me and try not to knock anything over."

The pair walked slowly toward the back of the store, the thin line of light emanating under a door the only sign they weren't alone in this botique of fashion.

"Josephine we're here! Well beyond fashionably late but here in one piece."

A middle aged french woman opened the door before the magician or Euphemia could reach the handle.

"Bernard! It has been too long!" The woman named Josephine exclaimed happily like she was seeing a friend for the first time in many years. She reminded Euphie of Milly Ashford. As if noticing Euphemia only now, the woman gave a mischevious grin before pointing at Euphemia and asking the man she now knew as Bernard a question Euphemia had also been wondering.

"And what is your arrière-pensée with this coquette?" The french woman asked.

Alright so Euphie had never learned French and thus didn't understand those words, it was like English was thrown in simply to give Euphie the barest idea of what was going on.

"She wants to know what my plan is with a tease such as yourself." The magician stated before turning back to the french woman, a smile on his face. "Veuillez aider son dans de nouveaux habits. Nous pouvons en discuter demain. Je vais au lit."

Euphemia was completely lost, he wasn't trying to throw in english words so she could understand, it was like she wasn't invited in on some joke, probably at expense.

"Bien entendu sir. Je suis toujours heureux d'aider vos amis, après tout ce que vous avez fait pour moi c'est le moins que je puisse faire." The woman replied.

'They could be planning something...maybe he's telling her about what I did to him.'

"Would you stop being so dramatic! Josephine and I are old friends, she's going to get you into some fresh clothes while I head upstairs to sleep this day off."

"But my day's only just started, you can't have been up that long...where you?" Euphemia asked.

"Euphemia, this building has an upper level that double's as a living space, I'll take one of the guest rooms, your welcome to do the same. We're heading to Lisbon tomorrow night."

"What are we doing tomorrow night?" Euphemia asked.

"The same thing we do every night pinkie. Try to free the world." The magician stated before disappearing in the direction of some stairs that would lead to comfortable bed with silk sheets.


	7. Chapter 7

**Somewhere in Russia, EU**

"That's it, just a little a further and your done for my Britanian friend." Fritz spoke triumphantly as he observed the movement of several Britanian battle tanks across the Russian steppe.

"Your too confident in your new software Fritz, those tanks could best a knightmare if given the right upgrades, their low silhouette makes them ideal for laying ambushes." Hanz said as he gazed at the armored formation through his own set of binoculars.

"An utter waste of Time Hanz, the Japanese couldn't grasp the future and look where it got them. Our organization has junk in the attic it needs cleaned out, might as well use cannon fodder for something." Fritz said dismissively.

The armored formation consisted of twelve Britanian type two main battle tanks, the very same machines that had smashed into South America and japan long afterwords. The machines sported 105mm main guns and one coaxial machine gun.

Coming up alongside said tanks were several trucks laden with supplies, armored personal carriers trundling alongside with hatches shut. The scene would've looked like a historical reenactment if not for the presence of the knightmares. Glasgows of all things were front and center flanking the formation, a total of four in all complimented this deadly Britanian armored regiment.

"Give the order to ambush the Unit!" Fritz called out to a nearby soldier.

"Yes sir! Right away!" The soldier replied before running several yards to a nearby command vehicle. It resembled an enlarged armored van instead of the monstrous command vehicles used by the Britanians and their viceroys.

A few moments later shots rang out as Fritz's own forces fired on the unsuspecting foe, Three tanks and a truck went up in smoke. The Glasgow's moved toward the the direction of the shots, firing as they went in short bursts.

"Well those tanks have had it. The Glasgows are the only real threat." Fritz stated.

"Don't be so sure." Hanz chastised.

The Britanian tanks assumed a spread reverse V formation and began to fire several shells in the direction of the enemy fire. The resulting explosion wielded plumes of smoke which rapidly expanded between the armored regiment and their ambushers. The Glasgows ceased moving forward and fired wide sprays of fire into the smoke, blindly hoping to hit something, or so it would appear.

Rocket pods deployed atop the armored personnel carriers as they charged into the smoke at top speed, the tanks following a quarter mile behind. The Glasgows provided continues sprays of fire as half their number split into two groups to go around from either side of the smoke, thus flanking their enemy.

The resulting explosions that took place couldn't be seen by either Fritz or Hanz, their binoculars not of the caliber needed to see through the smoke.

"That was a nice trick deploying a smoke barrage. Didn't think they carried those sorts of shells." Fritz commented.

"Even the oldest weapon can still be deadly when used properly with a little imagination." Hanz said smiling. The Prussian for what ever reason loved his panzers, outdated as they may be.

The air ceased to be filled with gun fire as the smoke was beginning to clear, with that Fritz and Hanz decided to take a jeep to investigate their foe.

The sight that awaited them was surprising.

The ground was black and dotted with holes from the impact of rockets puncturing the picturesque landscape. The armored personal carriers that had charged in like Calvary lay flipped over or burnt out metal husks, twisted as if by giant fists beating them in close quarters combat.

Their in a trench, or large pit depending, where two Ganeymade, third generation knightmares long out of production or use in war. The fallen weapons gave pause however, a large rocket launcher ten-point-fifty-six meters long (thirty-four-point-six feet), which had the odd attachment of an auto loading magazine.

The other Ganeymade sported a heavy machine gun which seemed to have been built specifically to shoot down large aircraft. It would have played hell with the old armored units if it had been adjusted to carry anti-armor rounds in place of its traditional payload.

As the two men inspected the scene before them, Hanz grunted out congratulations with reluctance.

"I would never have thought an armored regiment could be taken down by Ganeymade's, those tanks had reactive armor slapped on, never mind their brains didn't become mush in the face of knightmares."

"Of course they wouldn't my friend, I designed them after all but I think..."

Just as Fritz had begun to speak two Ganeymades appeared from behind the cover of a nearby forest, they both approached with urgency before halting in front of the two officers, The glasgows each moving besides the Ganeymades and falling on bended knee in submission to the two men.

The Ganeymades were missing arms, sporting hull breaches and looking a mess. The Glasgows appeared about the same if not worse. All in all it had been something of tie between the two forces.

"Automous Knightmare Operation Protocol is a success, version one-point-five has passed the beta phase."

"Congratulations Fritz." Hanz said.

"No Hanz, those tanks and APC's did more harm then I thought they would, those upgrades really helped them survive long enough to be a pain to my Ganeymades." Fritz said sheepishly before taking out a pack of smokes to offer to his fellow traveler in destruction.

An aid approached on motorcycle at that moment bearing a sealed message. Walking gingerly over the young man saluted before handing the letter over.

"The commander and Echo are in Paris as we speak, you are to head for Lisbon immediately with four akop units at once, he didn't specify weather it should be knightmares or antiques."

Turning to Fritz, Hanz smiled and stretched out a hand.

"Fifty-Fifty my old friend?"

"Why not. It would certainly be easier to sneak museum pieces in then actual military hardware." Fritz said with a calculating smile.

**Paris France, EU**

"I destroy...worlds...I remake worlds..."

"Big brother!" A girl sobbed as she clutched the body of her now dead brother in her arms and screamed, while thousands cheered the name zero all around her.

BEEP BEEP BEEP! WAKE UP! BEEP BEEP BEEP! WAKEUP!

"God damn alarm clock! What the fuck is up with that dream?" The gray eye'd magician mused aloud. Never the morning person, he none the less fumbled his way to the bathroom as the light of dawn crested on the horizon.

Looking at his face he could recall this dream had come several times before, anyone else would call them such but the gray magician knew them as visions into the future.

"Lelouch you are fool of the highest echelon." The magician said groggily turning toward the shower to begin his morning routine...one that so happened to begin with blasting himself with freezing cold water.

"I mean how does a guy make himself hated by the whole world expect that hatred to count for jack within a generation? Human nature always jumps back with a vengeance, whatever progress pops up is always tainted. Fuck I hate this." The magician exclaimed irritably as he stepped into the shower.

"Jesus fuck nuggets this is cold! Brrrrr." He shouted before quickly charging forward to turn the handle back from cold to comfortably warm. Valley Forge, Moscow, the alps and countless other places carried feelings of frigid embrace by tundra, old gray eye's would rather push away with the on rush of warm water.

"Well I guess I'll have to take pinkie out today, could call her Echo but she hasn't earned it...Euphie would raise eye brows not to mention keep her link with the past alive and well. Charles the almighty asshat would probably just off her if she rose from the dead."

Finishing up his bathing and preparation some fifteen minutes later, the man donned a black turtles neck complete with jeans and a pair of designer shoes, the look seemed odd but no one would think maniacal geass user plotting chaos. Would they?

'wonder what Josephine managed to pull together for Euphemia? Something low key I hope, her mission get up was hardly right on the first go. Better get this over with.'

And so the gray eye'd magician headed down the stairs fully intent on seeing his charge alongside one of many friends he counted on outside the organization he ran. The world was full of people, famous last names that didn't count for two coins a century ago had been made into powerful houses of industry, technology or in Josephine's case, fashion.

'Immortality certainly has its perks.' The magician thought as he entered the kitchen to see both woman eating breakfast, his own meal prepared for him.

"Good morning Josephine, pinkie. I trust your both feeling well" The magician asked as he took his seat and began to cut a pancake into smaller helpings.

"I've had enough sleep, tell me why we're here? Are you planning on using me against my country?" Euphemia asked.

'Well their goes the cheery mood...wonder if its Monday today.'

"Well Pinkie today's an awfully important one seeing as how we're heading on over to Portugul and unless you wanted to go all natural, Josephine providing you some form of clothing seemed appropriate."

"Portugal? What's in the occupied zone?"

"So you do follow some current events! Here I thought you'd lost yourself in japan, well the occupied zone as you like to put it is home to some very interesting people in need of our help. You'll help because you don't have a choice."

"There's always a choice."

"Sure but in this case I boils down to keeping you here which defeats the purpose of you getting to know your country's true colors first hand, dropping dead because you some how convince I was wrong to try to help you or C."

"What's C?"

"Its not all of the above if thats what your asking. C, is you run to the brits for help, saying how the long dead Euphemia Li Britania is alive and miraculously wandered all the way to Portugal. They'll probably lock you up for being nutters but suppose they believe you, then it would really get interesting."

The magician said as he began to polish off the food he'd been eating in between retorts to Euphemia, who naturally wasted no time in inquiring further.

"What...What do you mean interesting. Cornelia and Lelouch would be happy I'm alive."

"Yes but Cornelia's happiness doesn't over ride the emperor wanting to know what the fuck is going on, which he'll know has something to do with Geass...the same Geass he'd kill to keep secret. Lelouch, that compassionate bro of yours being who he is, would look bad for having failed to kill Euphemia the massacre princess. Course he wouldn't know who you are if they let you live to resume your life...the Japanese would though."

Euphemia suddenly looked down, pushing her half eaten meal away from her as tears began to leak from her eye's.

"I...I didn't mean to do those things and why wouldn't Lelouch recognize me? Is he too ashamed of what he did to acknowledge me ?"

"No Pinkie, your the number one evil in all of japan but your brother won't know any of this because as you saw, Zero fought and then died in the battle for the tokyo settlement. Your boy toy Suzaku took him down, probably dragged him to Charles to be mind raped."

"Raped!"

"Relax, the boys memories were changed, its the only explanation really. He's started Attending Ashford, going on almost a week now. His sister isn't around though which is curious. Makes you wonder if Suzaku chose to get even with Lelouch."

"He'd Never do that! Kurugi is a gentle soul, he cares about his people and hates taking the lives of others, whatever he's done out of anger I know he's still the same caring man I fell in love with!"

'Great now she's standing up and pointing at me.'

"Nothing you can show me in Portugal or anywhere in the world is gonna change that."

' Oh really?'

"So you'll let me show you Portugal fully confident you'll see the horrors and come out unscathed from the flames of Britanian oppression?"

"Absolutely. I won't run off again, you'd just find me out and hurt those I love if I went to them for help. But please, when this trip is done if I'm as unmoved by your words as I know will be the case, let me see them one last time before you let me go back to sleep."

'She doesn't want to know about her dad's power or think she'd be mind fucking her friends to appear alive one second and dead the next? Oh you foolish girl.'

With a shit eating grin forming on his face the gray eye'd magician rose to his feet and thrust out his hand looking to shake Euphemia's in binding contract.

As their hands clasped one another the magician could only utter with a deep sense of triumph.

"Challenged accepted."


	8. Chapter 8

The pair walked down the streets of Lisbon, several buildings still in disrepair. The attack and subjugation of this now former member of the European Union a directive handed down by the emperor to Schneizel.

While the prime minister and son of the emperor tended to get his own way, Schneizel couldn't negotiate around this particular point. The back room deals made hadn't been in Britanian interests but amongst the pair walking down the decrepit city street, the one with the gray eye's conveyed a look of understanding.

"What are you thinking about Bernie?"

'Bernie? The hell?'

"The state of the world relevant to your cotton candy hair pinkie. Now who the hell is this Bernie fellow?"

"Its your name right?" Euphemia said confused. Ever since Josephine had called her traveling companion by something other then 'sir', which is all the other people, soldiers no less called him.

"Why would you think that was my name? I mean if my mother had ever dined to name me something so odd as Bernie or what Josephine actually called me, Bernard, then I'd think I resembled a giant slobbering puppy dog."

"So you had a mother then."

'What the hell? How dense was she? Did she expect him to pull his skin off and reveal alien flesh, humanity a mere ruse?'

"Yes...though its been centuries since I last seriously dwelled on the memory. I wasn't born this way you see, as a child I experienced the world just like you, without the pomp or the spoiled trappings of nobility. My..._power_ came later."

"Just what is your power?"

'nosy bitch isn't she'

"I fart rainbows out my ass and piss oceans! Incur my wrath and ye shall face bear Calvary and the cunning walrus marines!" He said in mock seriousness.

"Your so crude. You could've just lied or told me it was none of my business." Euphemia protested.

"Well pinkie if I did that then it wouldn't be as humorous now would it? Tell me what would you do if you couldn't die, if all you loved eventually left you."

What would she do? Euphemia knew now or at least suspected that the gray eye'd man beside her couldn't be killed, she'd thought he was kidding when he'd alluded to being centuries old. If she was like that, what would she do?

"I don't know...I guess I'd try to make the most of my gift and help people." Euphemia finally answered.

'Your far too kind Pinkie'

"You'd help people...why would you.."

They passed a group of Britanian soldiers who gave them inquiring glances. He looked odd enough in his commoner get up, but Euphemia was sporting formal attire, business wear as Josephine had called it. Black blouse with a white skirt that rose just above the knee, her black boots being something the magician had requested, it looked ridiculous but she'd have to get used to wearing them. The first hint of an evolution her appearance, the first glimpses of echo.

"So we're going into the house and the guy jumps through a doorway both guns drawn like its the wild west. Put two in his chest before the bastard could fire a shot." A soldier bragged to his companion.

'Their just letting off some steam. If we walk past then no one will be the wiser.'

"How dare you talk about killing someone like its sport!" Euphemia cut into their laughter.

'why? All of my why right here right now!' The magician though in exasperation as the Britanian soldiers stopped moving past and turned their attention to him and Euphemia.

"What did you say bitch? I'll have you know you can't talk that way to us Britanian soldiers."

"I'm tired of everyone calling me that, I'm Britanian as well..."

'Was she going to play that card? She wouldn't...she couldn't...no one with a rational logical mind would'

"My name is Euphemia Li Britania and I command you apologize for your disgusting behavior"

'Yep We're fucked. Might as well walk right into prison and bend over...couldn't count pinkie in the logical camp.'

The soldiers laughed, laughed with a kind of ring to it that promised something bad was about to befall the pink haired girl and her traveling companion.

"You know you do look a lot like the late princess Euphemia, but professing it like that...priceless. Now because I like that body of yours I won't execute you here and now, just get on the ground and fulfill a little fantasy of mine I've been having since I saw that stuck up royal on television killing all those numbers."

'Thought those were censored? Oh well the net isn't as censored as some would like, Britianians have some odd fetishes though.' The magician mused before he jumped in to save Euphemia's bacon.

"Listen. My friend isn't well, she thinks she's Euphemia one day and Joan of ark the next."

"Did you just compare our princess, our beautiful monarch to Euro whore?" a soldier asked.

'Ok so its four dudes, one with a hopeless disregard for the monarchy, probably a commoner...poor one at that. Then you've got up his ass here, probably noble or just brainwashed. The other two are rather large...'

"I'm sure Joan was more a warrior then you'll ever be soldier and I don't need your help Bernie. These men obviously aren't real Britanian soldiers or they'd not speak to me like that."

'What? Doesn't she realize that they lied to her face? People wear masks pinkie and right now your not wearing the one your supposed to.'

"You know what boys, I say we just off these pieces of trash right here and now."

"What...You wouldn't. I'm a princess...and its out in the open someone is sure to see."

"Pretty soon this will be just like Area Eleven so they'd better get a good look at their betters. Boys."

The soldier snapped his fingers and they were on them. The two silent hulking sentinels had come alive at last and each lunged for their respective target. Euphemia going down onto the nearby grass, quickly overpowered. The magician just looked bored as he used the man's momentum against him and flipped him over before sending out a quick kick that shattered the man's throat.

The three remaining soldiers stared on in shock as the magician turned his gaze, promising painful death, to the soldier that was pinning Euphemia down.

"I'll get you out of this Pinkie. These fuckers are going down. Jus.."

BANG!

Euphemia watched in morbid fascination as fragments of brain and skull exited out the magicians head and he crumpled to the ground.

'He tried to save me and I killed him!' Euphemia thought sorrowfully until she remembered the events of the last few days. He couldn't be dead because then she too would cease to be alive, that body wasn't dead and gone, it would fix itself somehow.

"Bernie! Please...I'll cooperate just don't kill me. If you contact your commander I'm sure you'll be richly rewarded."

Smack!

The pain shocked her, the hulking giant had risen up, pulled back hand and smacked her face. His rough hands pulled her face to the side and let go.

Smack!

Their it was again, the pain, the sensation of tears leaking from her eye's.

"You look a lot like her but zombies don't look this good. I'm sure a few more punches to that face will erase that little act you got going on."

Euphemia felt real fear now. However quickly the magician may recover, these men would have plenty of time to make good on their threats.

"Help me!" Euphemia screamed out before rough hands covered her mouth. Another soldier coming over, pulling out his gun and holding it to her head.

"You've insulted the royals with this farce of yours. The others can have their fill but I'll personally like breaking that smug persona you've adopted, your not one of our great emperors brood just a filthy European con artist." The soldier who should have revered here most spat.

**AN:** Sorry about this update taking so long. Been working and focused on other stuff. How is Euphemia's character in this story? Does she sound like she would be expected to? I'm always happy to hear criticism so as to improve this little crack fic I started writing.


	9. Chapter 9

Damn it all! The gray magician swore as he banged his head against hard, uncaring metal inches from his head, he'd sat up without thinking and now was feeling the consequences of it.

The first thing that became apparent was the lack of light or space to move. Which could only lead the magician to conclude he'd been picked up and put in the local morgue as a john doe. They'd never find identification on him, he'd never needed to have it or could always slink pass with ease. Most of the time.

'Where is Euphemia at? I can't believe she was that stupid...was it fear? Was she afraid of me, did she just come to a fork in the road and charge on down an undefined middle path no one else saw?'

These questions plagued him. If he was at the morgue then the possibilities of him speedily finding Euphemia dropped. No one had bothered to do recon work on the city's layout, well no one he'd known to have arrived before him anyway.

"Pinkie why did you have to be so fucking niave?" he asked the air. Which reminded him that he should probably vacate this little cell of his. Every death was accompanied by the hassles of resurecting somewhere else...unless they left him to rot on the field of battle. He could still remember the pain and agony vlad the impaler creative execution style had caused him.

' Britanians are civilized next to that butcher. Well time to get out of here...teleport my way out maybe? No. If I don't save that trump card I'll be too exhausted when I really need it.'

And so it was with a gentle kick, well as gentle as someone like old gray eye's could manage, that the door to his tomb popped open. From their he put his arms out, feeling the sides of his small space with his hands, using the them as supports as he pushed himself out of the morgue's body storage unit.

'Well that wasn't so bad. All things considered I've had to extract myself from a hell of a lot worse.'

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Zombie!"

'Just had to get my hopes up. The hell is wrong with the world? Oh right I'm supposed to be a corpse.'

Turning his head in the direction of the screamer, he spied a chubby man in his late thirties, comically large glasses allowing the man's fear stricken eye's to see him in all his glory.

'Might as well fuck with the guy.'

"Say you ever hear the one about the panda that walked into a bar and ordered a beer and hamburger?"

The man looked at him for a moment before falling over unconscious on the floor. Moments later the smell of urine reached the magicians nostrils.

"I was gonna be all cleaver about how the panda shot everyone and left a twenty on the counter for the bar tender. Not that you'd have gotten the twenty reference."

The magician walked over to the nearby desk and attempted to open the drawer. The desk didn't feel like cooperating though.

"Guess I'll do this the old fashioned way."

The magician turned around and went to the unconscious coroner, frisking the man in search of the keys he knew the man must keep. Unless he wasn't the only coroner or just some pudgy underling for the big cheese at this place. Who knew how big the morgue was after all. He'd once come to inside a catacomb network beneath a large city, it had creeped him out something fierce.

'found em.' The magician thought triumphantly as he pulled the keys out of the mans side pocket.

Withdrawing the keys the magician let out an exasperated sigh of frustration before mouthing his emotions to the empty room.

"Just great. Just once I'd like things to be easy. Fucking hell!"

Their on the key ring was no less then forty keys. This was going to be a long night.

**Local Britanian office of administration, Lisbon, Occupied Portugal.**

The blows came once more, the numbness setting into her face was a god send in a way. Their hadn't been a rescue, no knights charging into to save her, just these sick men and their carnal desires.

"Look guys the Euro whore actually managed not to scream! Ha. Lets get the commander in on this action, when's the baron supposed to arrive anyway? Bitch isn't gonna last the night way we're plowing." One of the soldiers jeered.

That was right, she wouldn't last at this rate. Part of her mind wondered if she should just give into oblivion, she'd remembered flashes of the after life since waking. Clovis without the hassles of court or the demands of the emperor, still was just as vain dead as alive.

'Where was Mariann? Maybe I'm just forgetting our meeting, most of what I remember isn't very clear anyway. Guess I'll find out when this is over...oh god how I want this to be over.'

"That sod can fuck off, I've not had a go at this pink snatch! Can you believe it? The bitch don't shave, some retro shit."

"Not likely Jacob, cunt's probably one of those poor lunatics that escaped the psych ward. Good thing she's not batshit crazy."

"The fuck you say? She thinks she's our most revered late princess Euphemia, we shouldn't even allow our cocks to be tainted with this lying filth." Said the man from before, the proud monarchist, the loyalist. The one Euphemia thought would recognize, the one she'd have been aided by.

'I was a fool...Cornelia you were right about me after all. I let myself get used by everyone I loved. Lelouch, Maybe Suzaku saw me as a stepping stone. He's certainly got the power he's always craved, japan's no better for it though. Even you sister used me, the party's where I'd soften up guest with my innocent smile before you'd excuse me and make your pitch to the patrons.'

Euphemia's musing where interrupted as one of the men, their were now perhaps two dozen soldiers though she'd long stopped caring to keep count, pulled her to him by her hair.

"Open your mouth you filthy euro whore and take your place in the pecking order."

She looks at it, the soldiers not athletic, not even a young recruit like so many here. He's a fat corporal, outside the unit if she's not mistaken. She'd never paid much attention to the military it was always Cornelia's domain after all. She'd never imagined the men who wore the labels, the ranks or the fancy uniforms did all this. She'd been ignorant, she hated herself for it, for the way she'd carried on.

"Open! And if you bite me like you did charlie I'll break your other hand you understand?" The officer shouted at her. His small chubby penis inches from her face. He smells, the stench of sweaty balls and too much bad cologne.

She nods her head and tries not to wretch like before, the taste makes her want to bite down, to punish this asshole. That's how she'd begun to think of them, they said she wasn't a princess so why should she give a damn about edicet.

'I hate you. I hate your small dick and the way your all looking at me. If Suzaku was here he'd break you all in half and I wouldn't stop him. No ms. Prim and proper Euphemia.'

She would give anything right now to die, but the soldiers wouldn't let her. She'd asked for it, for an execution. Their answer had been to pull her panties down around her ankles and break her most sacred place. Oh how she had cried and begged, blood dripping everywhere. The man had yelled at her to shut up, hitting her in the back of the head as he finished.

They didn't care what they did to her, to poor Euphemia Li Britania. She was dead after all, whoever the person in front of them was, it wasn't a princess.

'What would Cornelia think of me if she saw? Would she run and hold me and tell me everything would be ok? Would Suzaku? Probably? Lelouch would probably use his power to make these men kill themselves. If she could be made to commit the most horrific actions, murdering children among them, then forcing men to suicide shouldn't be beyond Lelouch.

Was he even Lelouch though? Euphemia remembered how the mask came on and off with ease, even without the suit and helmet. He could be the charming, caring big brother to Nunnally and her while putting one between Prince Clovis's eye's the next. The soldiers he killed, the people caught in the cross five. Somewhere along the way she could see that he'd lost that pure caring innocence.

'Did Geass do that to him? Would it happen to me if I asked for that power?' Euphemia wondered.

It was taking all she could to be somewhere else, memories of Aries Villa, hell even the stadium was better then what was befalling her now.

"Quit being a fuck'n mannequin and suck you worthless bitch!" The soldier yelled.

"Suck! Suck! Suck!" The small crowd cheers.

'Disgusting'

But she does, she lets her tongue move around, the movements lacking eagerness or feelings. She hopes the movement, the barest friction, will set him off.

Sure enough within the span of a few minutes of degrading agony, she's made the bastard cum, the salty taste repulsive as ever.

"Looks like she's ready for the Baron."

Euphemia didn't see it coming, the kick to the side of her tear stained face, in a way she fails to register the pain. They've been doing this for a while now and its dawning on her only now how right the gray eye'd magician and Lelouch are, Britania isn't her friend. Behind all the smiles are evil men, soldiers who's actions keep pretty ignorant princess like her from having to experience inconviences like walking, paying for their own dresses or worrying about something as mundane as food.

The Japanese had been slaughtered, Cornelia probably killed her fair share of people in the middle east to turn it into area eighteen. It wasn't collateral damage, Britania never used the word because numbers don't matter, here and now she's experiencing what Britannia has planned for the European Union.

'This is what you were protecting Nunnally from isn't it Lelouch?'

The door slides open allowing a opulently dressed noble to enter the room, the man who must surely be the alluded to _baron_.

"Can't even wait for the real party to start can you gentlemen. This one looks better then the last batch...must have been quit the catch. Your sure she's mentally impaired?"

"Lord Hood. Its an honor to have you in our company, as always. " The royalist lapdog pipes up, bowing slightly as he addresses the noble.

"Nonsense. Once the war flares up, I'm positioning for the job of viscount, the title and lands will be sufficient for my wife of course, course I'll need a larger staff."

The soldiers all around her exchange knowing grins. The rise of lord Hood would mean much the same for them and they seemed prepared to do unspeakable things to ensure that rise.

"I'm not the first girl you've done this to? How could you...your supposed to serve as an example to the commoners. I guess your blood must be lacking."

That was the surest way to piss off a noble. Insult their family's ancestry, implying to them that their station wasn't secure or they worthy of it. Cornelia did it all the time with sycophants at court, Euphemia decided to try her luck now.

"She looks like the dead princess but she has such a disrespect for us men, greeting a baron stark naked. I dare say _princess_ you don't look too well, maybe its time I showed you who's in charge here, might even make you feel better." Lord Hood said with smug arrogance.

He was simply toying with a her. A cat amusing itself with a small mouse rather then eating it in one go.

"I...I've already lost my innocence. I doubt you could hurt me further."

"Well then lets remove that doubt shall we princess. I never liked the late monarch, too niave what with naming a number of all people to be her knight. Disgraceful."

The baron removed his robe first, allowing his pants to bunch around his ankles as he waved for the soldiers to bring her to him.

"Now princess prepare you anus!" Lord Hood laughed.

'no...nooooo!' Euphemia thought.

"No...not there! I'll do what the others wanted...I'll even do it well...just..just let me out of here. I've got someone I need to get back to."

"Sorry crazy woman, your boyfriend's dead. I checked myself." A soldier jeers.

'You have no idea who your dealing with.'

"You should have double checked. You won't find a body there now, he's probably looking for me. Even if he's dead...I know people who could make it worth your while."

"No. I've been quit the gentlemen to someone such as yourself, a lunatic with delusions of royalty, now your going to please and my pretty's before you meet your friends fate."

"Pretty's?" Euphemia asked perplexed.

A soldier brings out a satchel filled with knives, wires and medical instruments.

'Oh god no!'

"Noooo! Get away...you..you sick fuck!"

Euphemia lost all royal repose, all semblance of dignity as she struggled once more. She lost more teeth, felt still more punches just like before. They held her down as the Baron went to work in his sadistic pleasures.

Where was the man with the gray eye's and magical powers? Euphemia thought as she blacked out.

AN: Sorry this took awhile. Between work and work around the house I haven't really had time to write. This was a rather dark chapter but don't worry, payback is sure to be a bitch for the Baron. Speaking of, any suggestions on how Euphemia could get back at them? As always be sure to leave suggestions or comments in the review section. Next update is hopefully Tuesday, Wednesday at the latest.


	10. Chapter 10

The gray eyed magician walked with purpose through the streets of Portugul (city here), two praetorian's on either side, each eyeballing the surroundings for threats.

"Its a good thing I ran into you two, this job really needs to be a group effort." The man said with a look of concentration on his face.

Inside the mind of the immortal grey eye'd magician, he was trying to deduce where the thugs had taken Euphie.

'That wayward princess is gonna owe me for this. Maybe I should lock her up for a few days? Those reports of atrocities committed in Area eighteen might help...'

'She was this way!' The magicians look of concentration felll away as he broke inot a mad dash past some new apartment project in development, nearly being hit by a truck as he jaywalked across the street at high speed.

"Where the fuck is the boss going?"

"I've been wondering that the past forty-seven years kid, when I find the answer I'll let you know. Now haul ass and lets catch up to him." Hoffman said.

"Alright fine." The other man said, running after their boss with a hint of trepidation.

As they the two men crossed the street, they drew their firearms, forty-five caliber pistols, not the most powerful weaponry but easier to conceal then assault rifles or rocket launchers.

"Think he's walking into a trap?" Henry asked.

"You mean is he knowingly putting himself and us at risk?" His companion questioned.

"Yeah."

"When hasn't he? Remember Shanghai?"

"There was no Shanghai!"

" Well before that event that shall not be named, their were dozens if not hundreds more. Every time shit hit the fan only one thing was certain."

"That was?"

"Those guys shooting, stabbing or otherwise meaning to do the boss or us in eventually died sooner or later and we..." The man said pointing his gun at his fellow solider then back at himself to make the point. "Are still around.".

"...That stuff in china.."

"You've only been with the group for five years. How'd you end up in this line of work anyway?"

"...My family was murdered. The perp was a wealthy land owning aristocrat who thought he was above the common people like my wife and child. Long story short I stormed into his home while he was having a party with some guests and shot him in the head."

The man nodded knowingly. This wasn't that uncommon. White knights and dark anti-hero's filled the ranks of what many only knew as 'the company'. The boss had another name but the world didn't need to know it, not yet anyway. Euphie had a part to play, but what that was neither Henry nor Hoffman knew.

A yell interrupted their conversation as they drew near their now stationary leader who was looking straight ahead to a ruined apartment building.

"And they put you in chains and executed you before a cheering crowd! If you lady's are done gossiping, I've got a princess to save and I do believe I've found the right castle."

"What if you find out the princess is in another castle?"

The gray eyed magician's right eye twitched before he began to march forward, calling back to his two accomplices.

"If the princess is in another castle then I'll assume its being guarded by turtles and giant lizards in which case its safe to assume your commander and chief here has lost his marbles and is now senile."

The two men chuckled, their faces breaking into tooth filled grins as they entered the broken apartment building with their master some three yards ahead.

The smell of shit, piss and other odors assaulted their collective nostrils.

"Right chaps its time the safety's came off, the princess is here and we've got to assume she's not being treated with kid gloves. I'll take the stairs, Henry your with me, Hoffman can watch the entrance."

"Why do I have to sit here while you and Henry have all the fun?"

"...I wouldn't call this rescue fun...I mean its had its ups and downs sure. If my collection of movie's has taught me anything its that people rush in to save the captive, untie them and then get caught again because the bad guys came back. So with you by the door we'll at least have a heads up...besides you can stall em with the pea shooter you brought." The gray eyed magician stated before bounding up the steps two at a time.

Henry and Hoffman shared a look before Henry vanished up a flight of stairs to guard a boss they both knew was an army unto himself.

Henry turned to the entrance and crouched low by a broken window, not wanting to be noticed should trouble come a calling.

"Million times better then Shanghai." The man said as he became the guard dog for his master's temporary dominion.

* * *

It was fifteen minutes and four floors later that they found her. The body of Euphemia Li Britania covered with a tarp, underwear used to tie her hand behind her back, a single gunshot to the side of the head evident, brain matter and blood coating equal parts of the tarp and floor.

The gray eye'd magician stared at the girl for a moment, taking in the evidence of sexual assault, the bruises and the gruesome bloody mess that surrounded Euphie. Hell the mess that was Euphie!

"I've found the princess but this...this isn't the way it was supposed to go at all. No epic gun battles or choreographed heroics here...just a dead girl and an unfilled need for justice."

Hoffman for his part pulled out a lighter and a pack of smokes before speaking.

"No offense sir but she was dead before. These things I've got here should've done me in decades ago...but I've got you to answer to sir."

"I am a pretty good boss...all things considered. This..." The magician said motioning Euphie's body.

"This is never easy sir but your the right person for the girl. For this world, without you and the rest of our disfunctional family I don't know what I'd do." Hoffman confessed.

"Probably be dead in the ground or on the way their."

"But we have you sir...this girl has you too...if you don't think she'll be too damaged."

"Hoff...It seems I'll get the caped crusader I deserve and not the one I want." The magician said somberly, the dry humor of it all soaking its way into his bones but falling flat even to him.

"Go check upstairs...if anyone's here they might know something. The nights still young and the boys should be arriving with the cargo soon."

"Sure thing sir." Hoffman said with a crisp if unexpected salute before departing out the door to search the remainder of the upper floors.

The gray eye'd magician walked forward, bending down in front of Euphie and audibly sighing.

"Alright lets get you fixed up pinkie."

Though the man was eccentric cynic at times, having witnessed countless horrors over the centuries that deadened men's hearts as well as their bodies, if one looked close enough they could see something glisten in those gray eye's before the magician rubbed it away with his hands.

AN: More is coming up. Updates are coming for all my stories save MwM, this saturday morning or afternoon.


	11. Chapter 11

Euphiema gasped for air.

'Where...?' Euphemia thought frantically before her eye's landed on the man she'd been trying to get rid of these past few days.

"Rise and shine my accomplice." The grey eye'd magician said with a grin.

'He...He came back for me!' Euphemia thought before lunging at the man in front of her.

"gahhh!" the grey eye'd magician let out a yelp as the body of the petite long haired Euphemia crashed into him, causing to topple over, chair and all.

"What's the big idea of..." He began to ask her before she let the tear flow from her eye's and onto his clothes.

"They...They raped me! They...*whimper*, hurt me so bad...tell...tell me you killed them?" Euphemia pleaded in haphazard sentence that would've had a grammar nazi spinning in his grave.

"Their, Their. Hush, dark and handsome here is going to sort them out once your back at..."

"Back where?!" Euphemia shouted before pushing herself off the grey eye'd magician like he was leper.

'He doesn't think I can protect myself? Fine...but that was princess Euphema...and I'm not her anymore.' Euphie thought as she looked down at her bloody clothes, stained with her own fluids and those of the men that had their way with her. The very people she'd ran to for help.

'I thought my old life still mattered...maybe thats the problem. Maybe I need to let go.'

"Deep in thought are we? Not that I don't mind spending friday night at an abandoned building but maybe you could join me somewhere a little..."

"Clean? Not defiled?"

"I was going to say secure but whatever floats your boat." The magician said with a shrug.

"Oh. Sorry...I was just thinking. Its over isn't it?" Euphemia asked

"hmmm?"

"My old life. Those people I used to be friends with, Cornelia, father...even..."

"I could bet money on weather your going to say Lelouch or Suzaku..." The grey eye'd magician said.

"But the outcomes the same no matter which name you pull out of the sorting hat. For all intents and purposes your dead to the world...and the world would like to keep it that way it seems."

'I'm dead. That whole life is gone and everyone I thought was on my side could hurt me the most.'

"Then what do I do? I'm not dead, magician. I can see and hear and breath. What those soldiers...no..those animals did to me. They said they did it to other girls before...If I have nothing else to do, I'd like to end that."

"The good Samaritan route eh? Are you gonna be some masked defender of the night dispensing justice? Goody two shoe's Euphemia who wouldn't hurt a..."

'Shut up!' Euphemia thought before her fist connected with the magicians face.

"Just shut up!" She said as another blow came down on the man now once again on the ground.

"Ouch. Testy. So what do you want Euphemia? Your old life is gone, those men are still out there right now probably planning their next escapade, not to mention the guy who's orchestrating it all is a noble."

"How did you know that?" Euphemia said, her suspicions and conspiracy theories forming up one after the other.

"Elementary my dear Pinkie! While I was bringing you back from the dead, quit literally, your last moments played out for me like some kind of daydream." The jolly mood the magician spoke these words in quickly gave way to something sinister.

"Its how I know the baron is behind all this, Its how I know you resisted like a champ in the beginning. That when the end came you didn't beg or plead, you accepted your fate and were ready to be dead and stay that way."

The magician rose.

'I didn't beg did I? How could I? I'd already died once and nothing else of me remained untouched. Those bastards saw to that.'

"Your sister wouldn't appreciate that kind of language" The magician tut-tutted.

"Stop reading my thoughts! What does it matter if I swear? Fuck! Damn. Shit! DamnFuckBasardHell!" Euphemia shouted at the man as her tears dried on her cheeks.

"First of all you need to expand your vulgar vocabulary. Second it doesn't matter, not to me and not to Hoffman over there or Henry downstairs."

'Other people are here? He brought other's with him to get me?"

The man stepped into the doorway.

"Upstairs is clear, they didn't stick around, although I did find some money stashed away in a coffee can and a few pieces of jewelery. Sir. Ma'am." Hoffman said acknowledging the two people in the room, his eye's looking away from Euphemia.

'Why won't he look at me? Oh yeah I'm covered in blood and semen stains. But he can still help me!'

" ." Euphemia said in the most regal, commanding tone she could muster.

"Yes ma'am?" Hoffman responded perplexedly.

"Did you find any clothing that...that looks better then what I have on?"

"Clothing Yes ma'am but nothing for a woman like yourself."

"That's alright. Will it fit me?"

"Well...it would fit you, barely. It's just that the clothes we're talking about belong to britanian corporal, possibly a spare in case...whatever it is that goes on here gets too messy."

"Its alright . I won't beat around the bush about this...I was raped and countless other girls have been too. Some far worse then myself...if you'll show me to the clothes I think I can manage a quick change.

"That could work ma'am. Their's a petrol station across the street, I'm sure we could get you in there to clean up. If...If I see them I'll punish them for what they've done to you."

"Your a sweet guy Hoffman...but right now what I need is your knife and that pistol you've got strapped to your leg."

'Bet he didn't think I'd notice.'

"How did you?"

"I may have been a princess in another life but for its drawbacks we were taught to notice concealed weapons."

"That's Bullshit Pinkie and you know it. Hoff, your bottom pant legs are wet! What the fuck happened man, we can see the fabric sticking to the gun holder like its part of some conjoined twin that didn't go the extra mile!" The magician scolded his subordinate.

"So you really aren't an expert at spotting weapons or suspicious behavior?" Hoffman asked Euphemia, ignoring his boss's outburst. A little hurt the Princess had lied to him, without even knowing him.

"Well..." Eupehema looked away, twiddling her thumbs nervously.

"Unbelievable!" Hoffman face-palmed before turning back to his employer.

"I'll have the clothes here in two shakes of a lambs tale." Hoffman said before saluting and rushing out of the room and upward to the collection of clothes.

"How many shakes of a lambs tale make up a jiff?!" The magician yelled after the man. Turning to Euphemia only to once again yell in Hoffman's direction. "And bring the fucking money with you too!"

Euphemia looked at him now, they were both alone.

"So what do we do now Pinkie?"

Euphemia looked at him with eye's that suddenly didn't belong on that face, with a teeth bared in a silent snarl, the former princess of Britannia gave her response.

"We kill em."

"Pardon?"

"We kill them all. The baron, his soldiers and all their helpers."

"How would you do this ? Rousing speech's? Make Hoffman your white knight?" The magician asked with air quotes over the title of knight.

"Power."

"Power?"

"Stop playing dumb. You can't die, not matter how many times I've tried to kill you off. You can appear anywhere you want at will...I want that power."

"My my, someone's getting ahead of themselves aren't they."

"You can't deny me! I can't keep relying on others to fight my own battles for me...please..please just help me." Eupehmia pleaded.

"Oh I don't think you understand, its not that I don't want to help you. I'll help you alright, so much in fact that you'll grow to regret it one day. Maybe. You could always end up enjoying it and using it for a peace and justice and all that morally superior bullshit."

"How are you going to help me if your not going to give me your powers?" Euphemia asked.

"Well...See here's the thing. Most people, your brother for instance, get a contract, sign on the dotted line upon which they receive a geass. His happened to be mind control, yours could be mind reading, tornadoes or who know's what else. Difference is, I'm an open ended kinda a guy so lets say you get to have a buffet. Try before you buy as it were."

"A buffet of Geass?"

"I know sounded way better in my head then just now. Getting back on topic, you've got to prove you don't need that power because if all your hopes rest on Geass its just another crutch, of which you've had too many already."

"So what are you saying? I've got to just go out there by myself and get raped again to prove I need what your going to give me anyway?!"

"..." was the magicians silent response as Hoffman re-entered the room, uniform in hand.

"Here you are ma'am"

Euphemia kept staring at the magician and he returned it, pound for pound as intense.

'Guess I'll have to show him how wrong he really is.' Euphemia thought.

She held out her hand to receive the uniform, her face not turning away from the magicians gaze.

"Thank you . Sorry for lying to you...I shouldn't have done that. Can you forgive me?" She said, turning to look at him when she asked for his forgiveness.

Hoffman was many things but even he couldn't resist the sudden appearance of a pouting Euphemia. So somewhat flustered he gave in and acquiesced.

"Already forgotten ma'am."

"You can call me Euphie."

"Not really a common name around these parts though Hoff, maybe you could call her by her call sign."

"My call sign?!"

"Yeah little thing that slipped my mind up til now, your actually referred to as Echo within my little band of merry men. Doesn't have the reputation of Zero...or the imagination of 'the punisher', but we'll get by." The magician chuckled.

'Not as strong a reputation as Zero huh...Lulu wouldn't be surprised. Then again if I was like his Zero persona then maybe things wouldn't be so bad in the world...or maybe thats what he wants. Zero certainly killed Euphemia when plain old lelouch couldn't. Maybe that's how he deals with it all, hides behind his mask and kills everyone that gets in the way.'

"I'll just have to make it work. Thank you for the clothes Hoffman...now if there's nothing else can we please leave this place."

"Wondered when you'd ask. Meet us across town will you Hoff!" The magician said before grabbing Euphemia and disappearing in a pale green light."


	12. Chapter 12

"Where's the princess?" Henry asked as he rounded the corner and came face to face with the magician.

"Well she's not in another castle...thank god. Took you and Hoff long enough to get over here by the way."

"Sorry sir, we can't all teleport at will."

"Good thing too or I'd never find someone to go on bacon runs."

"Honestly sir, you put that shit on everything, including your ice cream, thanksgiving turkey...that thing the the sultanate of area 18 tried to shove down our throats."

"Guy couldn't appreciate my bacon loving ways gents, what else was I to do?"

"Not smother a muslims feast with pork strips and say you've improved it, sir?" Hoffman said.

"Yeah I suppose I could have gone the diplomatic route...then again area 18 crumbled like a paper tiger once Cornelia came into the picture. The thing they don't suspect is...

The conversation continued on outside while inside the locked single occupant bathroom, Euphemia took the knife the magician had given her, all be it reluctantly.

'They'd recognize the long pink hair anywhere, if they don't it wold still draw too much attention. Sorry Suzaku...guess I'm really gone now.'

With that thought Euphemia grabbed hold of her, holding it in a long single tail, brining up the knife, she moved it back and forth in tandem, cutting away her signature look. While the locks fell she looked at herself in the mirror, the person she was, had been, was slowly giving way to something else.

She didn't know if she should like it or not.

Back outside the group of conspirators kept debating the merits of bacon and the inroads made the past year.

"Listen guys, crouching Tiger hidden dragon is an awesome name for a secret military operation, no one suspects our affably named inquisition." The magician smugly stated.

"Its too much sir...we're spreading ourselves too thin."

"If we were anyone else then sure, but your compatriots in engineering have cooked up something truly spectacular that will make us equal to any power that strikes our fancy."

Hoffman and Henry both exchanged puzzled glances.

"What are you..." Henry began before the bathroom door opened and out popped Euphemia clad in military dress, her hair short and spiky.

"Why I could almost call you Q1, ha!" the magician boasted as he circled her.

"It really doesn't look that bad?"

"Honestly? You cut your hair with a combat knife, not exactly Britania's top model material here but its been done worse, trust me, I've seen some shit."

Hoffman and Henry snickered.

"And usually you need us to bail you out sir." Henry chastised.

"Only like forty-percent of the time my esteemed colleagues."

"So what's our next move?" Euhpiema interrupted.

Three sets of eye's turned back to focus on her. The truth of the matter was the magicians fabled meeting, had been shot to hell; perhaps their was something that could be salvaged.

"Well we were going to meet up with the Portuguese Liberation front, with everything that's happened we've missed the rendezvous, wouldn't dream of choosing differently though.

'Choosing differently? What are you talking about ?"

"Its simple Euphie, I could have gone ahead and booked it out of the morgue I woke up in; made the meeting with time to spare. Doing that would've cost me you however, we..." the magician said before Hoffman interrupted.

"We've all been looking for you Echo, even the other team is here with tanks and knightmares in case it was needed."

"Just for me." She said pointing at herself. "You could've found another Echo any time Bernard..."

"And we've already been over this Pinkie, your my kind of gal, baggage and all. So lets be accomplices in operation Pinkie's vengeance."

Euphemia chuckled at the idiotic naming of what was essentially a promise for revenge.

"Oh really sir, and when does this operation commence?"

"Why right now of course! Follow me you three wanderers, we've got a meeting to attend to. Our friends have brought some toys to town that their dieing to try out." The magician said with a wolfish grin.

"And who are we to disappoint them?!" The magician boasted as he grabbed Euphie once again and disappeared in the telltale green haze.

Hoffman turned to Henry and said with an exasperated sigh.

"I hate it when he does that!"

_**WAREHOUSE, PORTUGAL**_

With a brief flash of green, the duo of Echo and the magician where at the center of a warehouse bustling with activity, and lots of guns, guns that pointed reflexively at them.

"We'll I've had better welcomes in my time, just don't shoot me you bastards or I'll be very very pissed off when I get back up!"

A roar of laughter and smiles accompanied this declaration.

Euphemia (Echo), could see their was more then two people at this warehouse, rather it seemed like a small army.

'Its like being in the command center again, with all those guards and other people busy with their work. Wonder what the magician's going to have me do here?'

"Where will I fit in?"

"hmm. Well Echo we'll just have to find out now won't we."

"You read my mind again!"

"what? No, you said all that crap just now out loud."

"Oh." She said suddenly red faced.

"think nothin of it. Give a guy a couple lifetimes and after a while the only question is, where do I fit in? What's next? What's that stuff that's growing under the refrigerator? You know the big questions of the universe type stuff." The magician said casually.

"Where do we go from here?"

"Well you can go where ever so long as it doesn't involve tidal waves, blind stupidity or past flames popping up. I'm going to fucking bed, been a long day!"

"But we only just arrived here Bernard. I'm in uniform and I want to learn how to be useful, not cast aside like some plaything you can use whenever it strikes your fancy!"

The magician sighed.

"I am stuck up britianian royalty, hear me roar. We'll fine then. Go over there and find smart and smarter, I'm sure they'll have some crazy experiment for you to test out, all else fails, look around for Hoff or Henry, maybe you could learn to handle some firearms."

With that the magician made is way over to what must have been an administrative section of the warehouse, it was the only room with walls, a glass window or a door to shut out the world.

'grrr. Bernard why do you always run away when I'm ready to give you a chance? Maybe Lulu or Schniezel could help me...of course their off being high handed psychopaths...Did I really just think that? What's happening to me?'

Within the administrative room the magician let a smile form on his lips.

"Corrupter of souls like always. Nice to know I've still got it after all these centuries."

Meanwhile over in their corner of the warehouse Fritz and Hanz could be seen, covered in various machine oils, dirt and arguing over whether to fix up the remainder of the knightmares or dote on the odd looking tank they'd brought with them. Into this fray Euphemia stepped.

"Hello guys...hmmm...what's the problem?"

The pair ceased their in progressing smack fest and turned to regard Euphemia.

"Thank goodness your alright Echo!"

"Never doubted that you'd pull it off in the end kid, looks like grey eye's is letting you into the family as a full fledged member, congratulations. I'd offer you a drink but we've only got water."

"That's quit alright, thank you. I'm really new at this, do you think you could tell me a little about what we're all doing here."

Fritz and Hanz exchanged looks.

"We came along to provide the heavy muscle for the PLF."

"The Portuguese Liberation Front. Why?"

"The boss thought it would help make your jobs easier if you had big guns to back you up. It has sense ja? You and the rest shoot your guns but without a tank or a knightmare you are up creek without paddle."

"Why did you bring a tank exactly?" Euphemis asked, touching the aforementioned tank's frontal armor. The thing looked like it belong in a museum, tanks hadn't been deployed in great numbers since the invasion of japan.

"We argued with the boss to let us bring more knightmares but he said it would be suspicious. Bringing a pair of knightmares and old fashioned armor, makes it more believable when we tell checkpoints their for a museum or military exhibit."

"And they fell for it?"

"Why wouldn't they? Zero's gone and..."

An elbow to the ribs shut him up quickly.

"Sorry. What my friend meant to say is that since its been quiet for a while the Britanians have let their guard down."

For whatever reason this exchange made Euphemia angry. It was another example of people walking on egg shells around her, coddling her, believing that she couldn't be like the rest of those who held power. It was a charmed sort of life, the only problem was it ended with SAZ being a bloodbath or a perverted Baron and co, raping her.

'Never again! I'll never let myself be weak like that ever again!' Euphemia thought.

"Its alright Hanz, Zero may have been strong but we'll show Britiania that we're the real threat!" Euphemia said her anger pouring through her words.

"Whatever else we do I want that Baron and the Viceroy dead the first chance we get, if we hold back or try to be hero's we'll only have disillusioned follower later. How soon could these tanks and knightmares be ready to go?"

Fritz and Hanz exchanged looks.

"Well I guess we could have them up and running in three hours, but they wouldn't be at their best. We need more time to add reactive armor and extra battery packs."

Euphemia's anger subsided quickly at the mention of batteries, her natural curiosity winning over.

"Batteries?"

"Yep. Unlike the rest of the world, our knightmares and other platforms rely on advanced batteries, fuel cells for now."

"But we're working on a prototype plutonium reactor."

"You are? Nina would love this stuff...its a shame she isn't here now. You guys would get along really well I bet."

"Nina?"

"A friend I used to have...back before I died. Before all this." Euphemia said extending her hands out as if to encompass the massive space all around her.

"Its alright Echo. Maybe if she's really as intelligent as you say, the boss will bring her on board."

"You think so?!" Euphemia said hopefully.

"Either that or you become such a force to be reckoned with that you just up and take her for yourself. Anyone seen my hot pockets around here?" A voice said.

The group turned around to see the sight of a very undignified looking Magician alias Bernard, standing their in pajama's and a sleeping cap, complete with rubber ducky slippers.

"ummmm. Are those..." Euphemia began.

"Why yes I do believe they are indeed duck slippers. Can't be bothered to wear those damn bunny slippers, wouldn't be original at all. Does anyone know where my hot pockets went off to?"

"I don't know herr magician, perhaps you could settle for some pasta Fritz made earlier. Why not wear sandles?"

"Because Sandles aren't ….."

"Oh I know! He could wear big hello kitty slippers like they used to make in japan before the war. Anyone else feeling like cotton candy?"

"Now that you mention it I could go for some candy...and there is a restaurant still open down the street." Fritz mentioned.

"You guys...Where...are...my...hot..pockets? The one's filled with bacon and cheese with just a little egg. Those one's."

"Eggs! You think they have scrambled eggs? Maybe some waffles."

"Don't see why not herr Echo. Its about two blocks south from here, our uniforms shouldn't draw too much attention what with the britanians on leave."

A look of hesitation crossed Euphemia face, to which Hanz and Fritz responded by giving her their spare PKS-51 pistol's.

"Guns?"

"You guys are giving her guns now?! Oh and where the Fuck is my food?!"

"If anything happens, we'll be their to back you up Echo!" Fritz said.

"Ja! Wir werden diesen Kampf für sie Euphemia wie sie sind unsere Kameraden. Der Zauberer uns nie verzeihen würden sonst." Hanz chimed in.

"We're duel wielding now! I mean accuracy just got shot to hell...unless you wanna go all slow-motion max payne-esq."

"As shall I!" A relaxed, out of uniform Hoffman came running down one end of the warehouse, a sword and shot gun strapped to his back.

The magician could only point, mouth agape as Hoffman came to a stop and began shaking hands with the group of subordinates Echo appeared to have under some crazed spell. The kind of spell that caused good honorable men and woman to neglect the plight of a man in need of Hot pockets.

"This is madness! Madness I say!" The magician protested.

"You shant journey alone! I shall accompany you Hoff, and hopefully the restaurant will deliver us sustenance!" Henry said as he also came from another corner of the massive warehouse, leaping over box's, stacks of ammunition and even landmine to get to the group.

"Why?! My food is gone, plundered by unrepentant thieves and you all desert me in my time of need?! This is madness! This is Treachery!" The magician roared.

To which the collective group of Five roared back in unison, with a voice so strong it knocked the magician back on his ass.

"THIS IS THE WAFFLE FELLOWSHIP!" Before the group with Fritz and Hanz in the lead, followed by Euphie, Hoffman with Henry bringing up the rear.

Alone, or as alone as a man can be with two dozen technicians and soldiers milling about, the gray eye'd magician stared at the ceiling, shaking a lone fist in the air.

"I am forsaken. None but I care for the pursuit of baconated goodness. With all forces at my disposable having deserted me, I alone shall venture forth into the great wilderness of () and retrieve the greatest hot pockets known to man. Should I not return then I pray some brave soul avenges my death."

By this point half the technicians and soldiers were looking at their boss like he'd gone bat shit insane, the other half considered this par for the course.

The magician of course paid the onlookers no mind and promptly made it to the very exit the waffle fellowship had used to leave this facility. Returning about thirty seconds later to shout.

"Emanuel! My keys!"

A short time later the grey eyed magician was driving into the night, his search for nourishment undaunted. Little did anyone know the events about to unfold for his charge, Euphemia and her new fabled waffle fellowship.

AN: Its been a while but here is an update. Review please and tell me how this story is going. I'm concerned about keeping Euphemia in character or seeming believable. Its sort of the reason for my own character as a plot device. Feels good to be back from vacation in Seattle, so with work and everything else, it will be a while before the next update. Probably a week or two.


	13. Chapter 13

**Lisbon, Portugal **

"I'm stuffed...*burp*...excuse me." Euphemia said, her face reddening as she slide the plate forward with one hand, while the other covered her treacherous mouth. Euphemia's eye's were wide with shock at her unladylike behavior, especially with so many royal traits still making themselves known.

Euphie was trying to become a leader like Lulu, like Zero. Inspiring soldiers and fighting for change, though she admitted she still didn't know what kind of change Bernie had in mind. Not that any of that mattered if this was how she carried herself in front of her troops...

'Its hard to think about fighting my own people...but people like the baron...' Euphie thought as her mind recalled the rape and the final moments of yet another death she'd endured. It was a blessing and a course to wake up from a gunshot to the head or chest and recall those final moments.

'I'm not going to let people like that Baron live to do those things to other woman, even if I have to die again and again to make sure it happens. I'm sorry Suzaku...but maybe in this case, force is the answer. Why did you have to lie to me Lulu? Why did you kill me?'

"Earth to Echo? Come in Frau Echo." Hanz, the heavily accented of the two German members of their aptly named waffle fellowship chimed in.

The whole group which comprised of Euphemia, Fritz, Hanz, Hoffman and Henry had taken a stroll here to this dinner to order late night helpings of waffles. Somehow their eccentric leader's ramblings about hot pockets and bunny slippers had turned into a discussion...a very one sided one at that, about breakfast food. So besides Euphemia's third helping of pancakes, which remained only partially eaten, where a strawberry shake, sausage links and tea.

"Sorry Hanz. I was just thinking a little too deeply. Did you need something?"

"Nien Fraulin. Merely wondering how your holding up with all these changes. If you need anything, help training with the vehicles or whatever else, Fritz und I will be there." Hanz said seriously, head held high, chest puffed out in manner that should have looked dignified but came off as somewhat comical. The giant of a man had downed six plates of various entre's.

"That very thoughtful, thank you Hanz." Euphie replied before putting a finger to her lip and pointing at Fritz. Henry looked ready to interject with a comment of his own about defending the former princess, instead Euphie's words left her mouth before either Henry or Hoffman could clear their's.

"How would I thank Hanz in German? The words I mean. I've never really studied the languages of the EU before, those were always Schnizels area of expertise. I...I should have..." a lone tear fell down Euphie's cheek.

'Oh no! I'm crying in front of them now...this isn't like Lulu at all. Why did I have to ask Fritz that question? Thinking of all the opportunities I've had, all the changes that could've happened before my first death...it's so sad and pathetic I wasted it thinking nice words would win out. Words didn't stop the baron...'

A hand grasped Euphiema's right hand and squeezed gently, their sitting across from her was Fritz looking reassuringly into Euphemia's eye's. Expressing all the comfort the technically inclined german could hope to convey.

"Dankeschon."

"What?" Euphemia asked puzzled as she blinked her eye's to clear the last of the liquid from them. Fritz still held her hand and repeated the word again.

'What does that word mean...I don't know German! All I wanted to do is learn how to thank Hanz and...' Euphemia thought, her eye's widening in realization. She squeezed Fritz's hand before turning to Hanz who was looking at her questioningly.

"Dankeschon Herr Hanz!" Euphemia said smiling, her voice no longer abandoning her like it had a moment ago.

"Das ist gut Euphemia, perhaps you will come to Germany with Fritz und I someday."

"I'd like that Hanz."

"Well I'm bloody stuffed, lets be about it and get out of here before we can't move under our own power." Henry quipped. The faint aroma of alcohol wafting from his section of the booth they all crammed themselves into.

Hoffman leaned over next to Euphemia, While on the opposite side Henry began to waddle his way out of the booth, his German compatriots making ready to join him. With Just Euphemia and Hoffman on the other side, their was little risk they would be over heard.

"Don't tell him I told you, never hear the end of it if word got out you understand."

"What are you saying?"

"When Henry drinks he...sounds a little like the Boss."

'The boss? Waite, he must mean that Henry sounds like Bernie!'

"Hahaha!" Euphemia erupted in laughter, causing a few nearby patrons to glance at the group, the pair of Germans halting their exit from the booth to stare at Euphemia.

At a nearby table someone cursed and mumbled out what more then a few people in Portugal thought.

"Fucking Brits and their god damned nobles, life is just one big joke to them." An elderly man spoke into his soup.

Without warning Henry was on the man, slamming the elderly man face first into his own food, threatening to drown him in it.

Hoffman and Euphemia jumped out of their booth and raced the fifteen feet or so across the room to get to their enraged comrade.

"I'm not a fucking Britannian you smelly old fuck!" Henry said loudly, practically screaming, his words slurred by liquor.

"Henry please stop! Don't hurt the poor man, he can't hurt any of us, this isn't right." Euphemia begged.

Henry's blurred vision still caught the look in Euphemia's eye's, the worry, the shame and a small pinch of fear. The girl didn't know what Henry or Hoffman did for their little family, for the gray eyed magician. Eupehemia was still too green to understand why Henry was upset, she might understand in time but for now Henry knew he had to let this man go, firstly he'd have to prevent the poor fucker from drowning.

Henry gave a hard yank and the elderly man's neck nearly snapped as his soup covered face flew back and stared wide eye'd, shaking his head and coughing.

"You should thank this girl for being so considerate, if it weren't for caring people like her, men like me might not know when to stop. Now thank her and we'll be on our way."

The elderly man cleared his throat, looked Euphemia straight in the eye and shouted with all his age'd lungs could muster.

"Fuck you Britannian Whore!"

_**Smack**_**!***

Euphemia's hand had shot out without thinking, slapping the man hard across the face before she turned and ran for the nearest exit out of the dinner and into the night.

Henry having loosened his grip on the elderly man hadn't put up any resistance when Euphemia's hand shot out and slapped the elderly Portuguese man across the face, without resistance the man had flown to the ground where he continued to lay, complaining of pain in his face and muttering various swears.

Henry gave him a swift kick in the gut before racing after Euphemia, the rest of their group well ahead of him.

Coincidentally no one had thought to pay the bill in all the commotion.

Denny's would record this as their most talked about Dine and dash in all of Lisbon for many months to come.

**Alfama District Lisbon Portugal **

Euphemia came to a stop near the wall of the old castle, Sao Jorge. The once imposing construction of the Portuguese monarchy had fallen into disrepair following Portugal's inclusion into the European Union. Napoleon's grandson had personally lead the campaign enlighten the last bastions of absolute monarchy in Europe, as well as the last ally on the continent Britannia could claim.

Now Euphemia was leaning against a wall that itself was incomplete, small craters still dotted the once picture-sq scene in and around the castle, evidence of Britannia's recent and brutal conquest. The European Union had bartered the country this castle called home for treaties concocted by men like Euphie's brother Schniezel, signed under duress enforced by her fearsome sister Cornelia.

Euphemia felt shame. Shame that she'd tried so hard not to see the truth in front of her eye's. The Britannian princess shouldn't have tried to create a special zone, their shouldn't have been a need.

'Are you happy father? Some old man calls your daughter a whore because your country took over his home. Who am I kidding, you don't care about Lelouch or my big sister, no matter what we do or say, we're all expendable to you.'

**Somewhere That is not Portugal**

One minute he was driving through a tunnel in the Portuguese city of Lisbon, visions of bacon and other incarnations of said food when suddenly something happened, the tunnel was gone and his car was speeding full bore toward a wall.

'What the fuck?!' The gray eyed magician thought in the moments before he slammed on the breaks to no avail and smashed into the wall. The front of his sports car crumpling to absorb the impact, the airbag deploying and likely saving his life. Not that this particular passenger wouldn't have walked away from worse. For this man was a magician.

Some moments later.

'My head hurts, this car is most likely fucked and somewhere is a traveling band of miscreants devoted to waffles! I mean fucking waffles? Really?'

The peaceful stillness of the night, minus yours truly getting involved in a game of chicken with the local temple's wall, was shattered by the sound of explosions. Small and numerous explosions.

'Oh great so now I'm in war zone, probably Britanians fucking around with some local resistance...why can't I ever just go out and not have shit blow up in my face? Guess step one is finding shelter and removing my head from this airbag, comfy though it may be.'

With some effort the magician managed to undo his seat belt, withdrawing his head from the airbag, the door however proved an obstacle.

'what the hell? This thing won't open? Must be mangled from the impact with over there. Guess I'll just have to go all bad ass here then. Sorry but I've got people to meet and bacon to devour.'

The magician swung his legs around and scooted back, leaning toward and into the passenger section of the car which had been empty for this particular excursion.

'One...two...number after two and four, time to hit the floor.' The magician grinned as he drew back his legs and kicked with all his might.

The door flew open and broke off, hitting the pavement and sliding into a nearby street light that promptly fell over.

'Crap...guess I'll vacate the premises before they get me for destruction of property'

Bang! Bam! Brrrng!

A lone voice seemed to enter the magicians mind.

"I belong here!"

'Well good for you buddy, I'm not sure where...'

The signs caught his eye's, impossibly, the magician found himself staring at Japanese kanji. The magician found himself in japan...not Portugal and those flags hanging here and their were Japanese. Not some Lion with a snake mishmash that should be hanging but the actual red and white flag of japan.

Clearing his throat and voicing aloud the first thing that came to his mind, the magician promptely acted with all the dignity and grace he could muster.

"Where the fuck am I?"

Staring over and past the nearby wall, the magician could clearly see a giant pissed off Buddhist statue that appeared to be fighting...something. He'd venture the something was what was causing the bangs.

Wherever he was, the gray eyed magician was going to have to contend with that seven story monster, possibly whatever was pissing it off and then find his merry way back to Pinkie...but not before he found out where he could garnish some hot pockets. In the mean time he could only make statements to the empty night air around him.

"Well I'm clearly not in Kansas anymore...wonder what Toto is up to?"


	14. Chapter 14

**Echo**

**Chapter**

**14**

"Please...I...I don't have any money" The man begged the two men who loomed over him.

"Well of course you don't, you fucking bum." The soldier said as his baton came down again smacking the man who was struggling to stand, right back to the cobbled street. The night was young and for this unlucky portugese man, two britanian military police had decided to clean up the metropolises streets in their own sadistic manner. Starting with him.

"Good one James, this trash needs to get thrown away before it pollutes anymore of our beautiful _Britanian_ soil."

The homeless man was crying, blood was dripping from various cuts, bruises and opened sores the two uniformed Britanians had inflicted on his weak body. Even so a sense of indignation boiled over to hear his attackers claim this land was their's.

"...". The homeless man mumbled under his breath.

"Hmmmm, what did you say trash?" The officer asked as he brought the man up by the scruff of his neck.

The eye's of the two met, predator sizing up the pray, like a cat toying with a mouse. The mouse knew its fate and decided here and now it wouldn't play along.

"Its not your land! _filho da puta!_ ." The bum screamed into the officers face, spitting saliva and flem all over the Britanians face in a bold act of defiance.

"Fuck! James, help me with this guy!"

"Way ahead of you. Hehe." The sadistic one of the bunch chuckled as he cracked his knuckles and delivered a punch meant to shatter bones into the poor homeless man's family stones.

"ahhh!" The man screamed a muted cry of terror, the pitch was higher and the sound barely reached the ears of the two men tormenting him but it got through all the same.

The boots came in tandem, one coming while the other was going, their steel towed tips smashing into the Portugese man's ribs, face and finally back as he attempted to curl himself into a ball.

Into this scene of horror and cruelty a group of would be-saviors stepped forward.

A fellowship as it were.

**MOMENTS EARLIER**

Euphemia's tears had long since stopped falling, now her only concern was getting back to her friends and heading back to the base...back to her home.

"Its funny, that sky is the same sky I used to see from the palace, those are the same stars too. I used to wish on them that Lulu and Nunnally would come back." Euphie said to the night air, remembering those last moments she'd had with her siblings.

"Nunna. You don't know what your brother's capable of do you? He's fooling everyone, Cornelia, father...even you, his sister. Is he ashamed of what he's done? Is he afraid what you'll think of him?"

Euphemia let out a sigh as she passed still more houses, the Britanian occupation while still fresh compared to that of Japan, was beginnning to move forward. The classic archetecture she'd been surrounded by interrupted here and there by _Britanian style _housing, shops or dreadful looking military outposts.

Euphemia looked to her right, down one of the many narrow streets cars couldn't hope to pass through, probably because those roads had been created without cars in mind. All the same on the far side their was a squar toll booth looking structure.

'Maybe there's a phone in there' Euphemia thought as a smile began to appear on her face, her fortunes seemingly improved. She'd written down the number and memorized it while the waffle fellowship had been walking toward their destination.

"Once I'm there, I'll just call the base and see if Bernie's back yet, I'm sure he could pick me up...or maybe the others have cell phones! Why did you forget your phone back at the base Euphie..." Euphie pondered.

Once she actually made the phone call, it would be a matter of entering the right information so as not to draw suspicion should the line be tapped. To that end Euphemia, code name Echo, would ask for Magic Scoop's ice cream emporium, to which they'd ask what flavor she wanted. Of course being the genuis he was, the magician had assigned Euphie the code word _Pink Bubble Gum _as the flavor she'd request.

Recalling the memory of being told this information made Euphemia touch her head with her right hand and wish for a hat, the long locks were gone and her short hair made her seem like a boy from a distance.

'If I dyed it I bet the Baron's men would think I was boy...would probably only shoot me then. ? Why am I thinking like that?' Euphemia stopped mid way through at the revelation of darkly she'd begun to view the world. A flashback was all she needed to push the doubts away.

_"Open your mouth you filthy euro whore and take your place in the pecking order."_

'That's why! If I ever see those men again...I'll...I'll'. Euphemia struggled to find the words to describe what she would do to them, if given an ability like LuLu's she'd probably make them take their own lives. The thought of her giving such an order raised a question in her mind.

'How many people did you kill Lulu? Did they hurt you and you had no choice or did you murder them because it was all part of your plan and they were in the way?' Euphemia questioned as her fingers felt the cold metal of one of the pistols her friends in the waffle fellowship had leant her.

Truth was that she'd never fired a gun. Henry had shown her how to switch the safety on and off, while Frtiz had shown how to reload the magazine back into the weapon. All in all it seemed really easy.

Pilots flying knightmares probably viewed their job much the same way after they'd seen enough combat or run enough excercises.

'Its so easy to kill...if peace was as easy we'd of had it long ago. Maybe I'm just deluding myself...either way I've got an order for Pink bubble gum ice cream to place.' Euphie thought her mood lightening considerably as she now saw the empty toll booth with lights and a phone within it visible through the glass window.

Unfortunately she could also hear the sounds of a troubled soul in pain.

"God...please! Help! Any..."

"Shut the fuck up! Portugese trash! You wanna wake the whole fucking neighborhood?!" A Britanian voice shouted in anger.

"Think this bloak wants to do just that, better gag him, got some string back at the booth we can use." Yet another Britanian voice joined in.

"Whatever James Just hurry the fuck up, this guys taking too long, this city's full of garbage just waiting to be thrown out."

'Those are Britanians!' Euphemia gasped, he mind racing she did the only thing she could think to do and rushed to the nearest side wall, just shy of stepping out into nearby street lamps illuminating glare.

The sound of food steps and whistling caused her heartbeat to increase rapidly, her gripe tightening on the pistol she'd thought she wouldn't have to use.

'Go away! Don't look over here! Please don't look down this narrow road...'

"Hey James!"

"What?"

"See if we got any scotch left over. Wanna see if this trash is flamable."

"Sure why the hell not?! It'll be a regular Portugese Bar-bequ!" The Britanian solder now known to Euphie as James laughed at his own dark humor. This whole affair was a dark horrific comedy and a former Britanian princess had stumbled right into it.

'Their going to burn a man alive! He was calling for help...and the first thing Euphie does is hide behind a wall and pray they don't look this way. If I die then Bernie just brings me back again...if that man die's then he's gone for good.'

"Gonna Shoot me all the Portugese I see. Gonna stab em and shoot em for his hieghness does decree it our right to rule thee!"

'Tht sounds horrible! That's the kind of sick ideology I used to uphold...even if I didn't know it. I should have known! A princess that doesn't know what goes on in her kingdom doesn't deserve the kind of power I had...no one does. Zero was right...even if Lulu's become a monster, I see now why he hates Britania so much.'

"Hear that trash?! Your gonna be in our little bon-fire pretty soon, the better for your friends to see our uniforms with. That way they'll know who's coming teach em a lesson. All hail Britania!"

'Monsters! If this is what the world see's when it looks at Britania...then I'm glad Euphemia Li Britania is dead to the world. I'm sorry Suzaku...Cornelia...Nunnally. I'm about to do something very bad.' Euphemia thought as she steadied her grip and positioned herself for what she was about to do.

"All hail Britania!" James responded in good cheer as he neared the booth, which the two ran like a checkpoint and had done so for months now since the Baron had given the go-ahead to quit playing games with the europeans.

"Death to Britania!" Euphemia shouted as loud as she could, her form appearing out from around the corner and firing several shots in rapid succession.

James could only register suprise and then shock that this oddly dressed woman was shooting at him. The worst of it was that she sounded Britanian! That made no sense but any attempt to think about this odd turn of events was cut short as pain exploded in his left shoulder.

"gahhh! Stupid bitch, what the hell?" James screamed as he fired back, a bullet from his gun finding its mark and hitting the unknown assailent in the right leg, causing her to tumble to the side and into the booth Jame's had been meaning to retrieve his remaining scotch from.

'Ow...what the hell? I'm shot...when did I get shot...' Euphemia thought, grimacing at the very unroyal use of profanity in her thoughts. Their was little time to dwell on the matter as blood began drain out of her.

'I thought there'd be more...I know from the stadium and being shot before that this wound isn't going to be the end of me. But it hurts so much! How does Cornelia face this again and again? Crap he's coming this way!' Euphemia thought as she heard the sound of staggered feet hitting the pavement in succession.

James knew he'd won, the bitch had fired seven rounds, and he doubted she'd have time enough to reload before he got to her and pumped his remaining clip into her. He'd shoot her hands first so she couldn't resist, then him and the boys back at base would have some fun interrogating her about her friends. If this was just some wanna-be savior like those fools in area elven then they'd make sure her death was as humilating as could be.

Racing round the side of the booth, his weapon was in the midst sweeping to bear on the enemy he assumed to be out of ammunition or otherwise crying over her wound.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Three shots, all of them finding their mark on James's torso, one in particular tearing through his right lung, causing blood to pour into it. Without aid he'd drowned on his own blood.

'She shot me?' Was jame's only major thought as the wind seemed to leave his sails and the ground came closer and closer, his voice belting out the only words he could think to utter.

"Medic!"

"After what you did to that poor man you expect others to help you in your time of need? Your not a monster...your just a coward, a bully who thought he'd have an easy time hurting these innocent people." Euphemia chastised.

The Britanian soldier was on the ground, gasping for breath, a pool of blood forming around him, his face having fallen over the threshhold and threatening to contaminate Euphemia's bloody wound with his own.

"Get away from me!" Euphemia shouted at the man as his fellow soldier fired several rounds into the Booth from several yards away, some hitting low and tearing through the Booth's wooden frame.

The crunching sound was all Euphemia heard before her eye's registered the gaping hole and the loose bits of bone and muscle hanging off her left knee, which she'd brought higher in an attempt to scoot away from the Britanian soldier dying in front of her.

"Ahhhhh. God that hurts...fu...mmmmm. " Euphemia struggled to resist shouting as her world became still more painful. A small part of her, the part that liked being unharmed and taken care of, perferably in the company of a magician or a platoon of royal guard, wondered why the hell she was out here. She didn't know this person and he probably didn't like her simply because of her lineage.

'Because its the right thing to do! That's why I'm out here fighting, not cowering like some pampered princess while everyone whispers the lies I want to hear.' Euphemia roared at herself mentally, ashamed her mind could entertain such doubts when she needed to be brave, now more then ever before.

"...Bi...tch!" James croaked out as he recovered from his black out, raising his weapon shakily he saw the girl's eye's widen in surprise as he used the last bit of strength to pull the trigger and hopefully send the bitch to hell where she belonged.

Fate was not on James's side.

Another flash, another eruption of pain as Euphemia swayed to the side to get out of the Britanians line of fire, her only trump card being she wasn't shaking from blood loss and he was. The man's eye's barely stayed open, his hand struggling to pull the trigger much less hold his weapon got off one shot and it paid Euphemia back an eye for an eye.

'My head...he missed my head but...that wound in my shoulder stings.' Euphemia noted as she steadied her own weapon and fired point blank into the man's head, brain matter spewing out through the back of his head and painting part of the booth red. Not that it wasn't already peppered with the stuff.

"Wow...I didn't think there'd be that much blood...the stadium didn't have anyone that close to me when I shot them. I've killed him! I'm not your precious baby sister anymore Cornelia..."

Zip! Some glass shattered, raining down near Euphemia's position on the floor.

"But I refuse to die."

'Three rounds are left and if that soldier's called for help I'm done for. My legs too damaged for me to get very far...if they get me alive they'll torture me. Or worse.' Euphemia grimaced at the memories of her rape and subsequent execution. Never again would she allow that to happen.

"I've got two shots, if they don't finish him off...then I'll take my own life. Bernie won't like it but I'll tell him I didn't go down easily. That should be good enough for him...I hope." Euphie thought aloud.

AN: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Thanksgiving is over and I hope you enjoyed the feast. For international readers its an american holiday where we stuff ourselves with Turkey and way too much food. I had to work and have been picking up more hour's recently.

The conclusion to this firefight is coming up. I just wanted to get this out to you now since the month is almost over and I meant for this to go out on thanksgiving. What are your opinions on Euphie? Is she in character or too OC? How is the firefight written? If you have suggestions please post em in a review or PM me.

Thanks again for reading my Code Geass fanfic, every review or bit of traffic really pushe's me to keep writing. As a reader on I can empathize when it comes to long waite times, I'll try my best to speed this up but I don't want filler chapters or a massive nose dive in quality. Please be patient or send me idea's.


	15. Chapter 15

**ECHO**

**CHAPTER 15**

******"**I've got this bitch...she killed James...She shot him and he's dead. I hate all you Euro shit stains...why can't you just die!" Charles Leoroy Jenkin the third bellowed as he emptied the content of his weapon into the splintering Booth he'd manned these past few months. **  
****  
**His comrade had been taken by surprise when someone had leapt out of the shadows from around the alley and opened fire. Charles had been too far back, still in the middle of administering a beat down to the homeless Portuguese man to be of any immediate aid.**  
****  
****'**It's all my fault you died James, but don't worry I'll make sure your murderer suffers in the worst ways imaginable.' Charles vowed. **  
****  
**The clicking of his weapon signaled the ammo was spent as the last of his rounds shattered still more glass, which with any luck had found its way to cutting the assailant some fresh wounds. **  
****  
****"**Why the hell did we leave our radio's back in the booth? My only hope is that outpost two down the block hear's this racket and sends the cavalry to investigate. Come on Anderson, you get your nosey ass over here and help me!" Charles fumed. **  
****  
**It didn't help that they'd told the lowly conscripted private...and a number no less, to shove off the last time he'd come a calling to investigate gun shots. Then it had been two prostitutes with too much back talk. Charles could only hope the south American would've picked up on the different sounds _their_guns had made compared to the assailants.**  
****  
**Inside the booth however a pink haired girl was wounded, scared out of her mind and readying to return fire. In her mind she may already be dead...yet the specter of death held no sway the way it did for Charles or recently deceased James.**  
****  
****  
****  
****  
****The waffle fellowship**

The sound of bullets zipping through the night air caught the attention of the search party, the waffle fellowship pausing in its quest to find the princess. **  
****  
****  
****"****Das kann nicht gut sein. Wir sollten uns beeilen und f****inden Sie die Prinzessin!" Hanz said****.****  
****  
****"****Your damn right it aint any good! Looks like this man hunt ju****st became a rescue operation lads. Time our blades did the talking." ****Henry said in a voice that betrayed his impatientence.****  
****  
****  
**Several more shots rang out, piercing the calm, several pedestrians caught the fellowships eye as they scurried away into their homes or shops. **  
****  
****"**That was certainly odd, one gunshot and they didn't seem all that perturbed, someone shoots back and suddenly they run for shelter. If Euphie's nearby she might try to stop the violence...you heard what the boss said about how she was kidnapped." Henry observed.**  
****  
****"**Yeah," Fritz answered drawing his own weapon, the unimpressive pistol drawing chuckles from Hanz and Henry alike. **  
****  
**Without a word exchanged between the group, they began their run toward the source of the gunshots, the sounds becoming clearer,**  
****  
****"**That's one of mine? Elizabeth..." Henry blurted out in realization.**  
****  
****"**What?" Fritz asked seemingly bewildered at his fellow soldiers words.**  
****  
****"**I named my cutlass after a girl I had a crush on...can't remember much since it was a few decades back." Henry explained.**  
****  
****"**You English are an odd sort Her Henry. If that is one of _yours_then we know that the prinzessin is truly engaged in combat. Can't you reach the boss at all ?" The German asked looking from Henry to Hoffman for answers.**  
****  
****"**No. Damn it the guy takes off from time to time but he's usually always responsive to incessant phone calls. Bacon or no. The text's should have had him popping up around here, they all read Echo code red and there were five of em. Something must have happened to that mad hatter." Hoffman responded. His eye's scrunched up in thought as he continued to run with the rest of the fellowship cutting into an alley as Henry gave a warning.**  
****  
****"**Brits!"**  
****  
**Sure enough their they were running further up ahead with the same idea in mind. Reaching Euphemia and joining in the fray of combat. **  
****  
**The last of the group of three Britanian occupation troops turned around at the sound of henry's voice, bringing his pistol to bear on them. Momentary hesitation the fellowships saving grace. **  
****  
****"**Thwack!" the sword Hoffman so lovingly cherished went a flying through the air with as much force as he could manage...**  
****  
**The sword's handle spun round to hit the Britanian solder square between the eye's causing the man to stumble back and shout out a laundry list of profanity's before a bullet tore into his neck that caused fountain of blood to gush out as he collapsed.**  
****  
****"**What the hell was that Hoff?"**  
****  
****"**Looked cool in the movies..." Hoffman mumbled, the impromptu leader of the group feeling embarrassed for thinking a stunt like what he'd just attempt would ever work,. **  
****  
****"**Das ist gut I brought my own weapon yeah? Dietard could always hire you on if we ever meet up with zero. You'd make a great stunt man." Hanz chuckled.**  
****  
**The two remaining Britanians turned and shot into their pursuers a bullet impacting Henry's upper torso just above the heart. **  
****  
****"**Son of a whore that hurts!" Hoffman cried as he finally retrieved his own firearm, one of two he'd normally carry into battle. As he raised the weapon to exact painful revenge, the two soldiers raised their weapons and prepared to shoot Hoffman's cranium full of holes. **  
****  
****'**I'm about to die? Owned by two cock eye'd cunts in an alley.. Bullocks' .**  
****  
**Something shifted. One minute the two occupation troops had him dead to rights, no escape, game over. The next moment Hoffman could only stare indignant that his bacon had been pulled from the fire by the cheap trickery of the crafty german bastard that now brandished_his _sword.**  
****  
****"**Ist their a problem officer?" Hanz asked jovially, shit eating grin on his face.**  
****  
****"**Ahhhhhh!" Anderson screamed as his arms fell away, severed at the elbow, blood splattering all over the ground and his uniform as he began to flail. One moment he'd been sure the enemy would die by his hand...the next he had no hands. Then there was the German fellow that hadn't been there a second ago. Anderson was sure that person was at least ten yards behind him...now he was just _here._**  
****  
**The two members of the fellowship paid the man no mind which only served to stoke Anderson's anger as he was now determined to save his fellow comrades James and Charles from what surely must be a wicked PLF plot. **  
****  
****"**I'll kill you all, you euro bastards!" Anderson screamed as he lunged forward to tackle Hoffman, completely ignoring the German that had quit literally _disarmed_him. Sadly Anderson's comrade did choose to attack...lunging to bite or perhaps head butt Hanz in the face. **  
****  
****"**What are you gonna do bleed on me?" Hoffman asked, eyebrows raised in surprise. The man clearly had gone mad with shock and Hoffman proceeded to oblige the mad man by delivering a round house kick to the Britanian's gut, sending him sprawling backward, nearly toppling over.**  
****  
****'**Something tells me if the magician was here he'd say something to the effect of _roadhouse. _Great now I'm starting to think like that maniac. Best finish these two off and rescue the princess.' Hoffman thought as the Britanian regained his balance.**  
****  
**Fritz lowered his weapon and came to a stop next to Hoffman as they regarded their vanquished foes. Hanz hadn't been satisfied with just disarming the poor bastard that had seen fit to attempt to eat his face off, now the Britanian had literally had his legs taken out from under him. The pathetic quadruple amputee, now a bloody mess swearing up the fellowship from the ground. **  
****  
****"**You two should just give up and stand aside...well one of you anyway." Hoffman pleaded with the men. truth be told he didn't want to have to kill these two...something about it didn't seem sporting, if such a word could be used to describe the ethics of combat.**  
****  
****"**We're invincible!" Anderson and his compatriot roared and the single standing Britanian lunged forward once more.**  
****  
****"**How invincible is he? Does he think he's ubermensch?" Fritz asked aloud, wondering if Britanians really did think themselves supermen. Social darwinism was one thing but this was just insane. The britanian before them had no arms!**  
****  
****"**Let's see how invincible he is when I do this..." Hoffman said as he_finally _had the good sense to unsling his shotgun and let loose a powerful blast directly into the face of the crazed britanian. The headless corpse fell to the side landing in a heap on the ground like a rag doll.**  
****  
****"**Boom. Headshot." Hoffman said in a flat voice. **  
****  
****"**Guess he wasn't invincible Hoff, what about the other one?" Henry asked. **  
****  
**Hanz supplied a cold logic to their next course of action. **  
****  
****"**This Bloede-Kuh has lost too much blood. We should..." Hanz began before the subject of their discussion spoke up.**  
****  
****"**You've killed Anderson, James and Charles will avenge him soon enough...but if they don't I'm gonna make damn sure your all in front of a firing squad and laugh while you beg for your lives!"**  
****  
**The fellowship closed their eye's briefly and groaned. On the one hand they knew Euphie was facing two soldiers...on the other they were probably fanatic as the three they'd just encountered which couldn't bode well for the princess. **  
****  
****"**Alright chaps...this Brit wants to die for king and country. We shant let him down." Henry said before drawing his pistol along with the rest of the fellowship. "Any last words brit?" **  
****  
****"**All hail Britania!" The Britanian screamed. All in all it was a comically sad display of fanaticism. He'd have been a welcome additon to the Pureblood faction of the Britanian military...if he hadn't been of humble birth that was.**  
****  
**Gunfire answered the man's yell as three pistols and a shotgun discharged their rounds into the crippled Britanian soldier.**  
****  
****"**Lets...hope that doesn't happen again. I don't think I've got it in me to murder someone who can't fight back..." Hoffman noted.**  
****  
**Hanz of course interjected. **  
****  
****"**This is horrible yes komerad but they do the same to those they conquer and don't have trouble sleeping in their satin sheets."**  
****  
**Hoffman wanted to argue the point when a loud bang pierced the momentary silence. In their encounter with the three Brits they'd not paid attention to the lull in fighting elsewhere. Now it was back.**  
****  
**One shot rang out in the nigh air, followed by another. Finally a single gunshot echoed through th air and no more was heard of the battle up ahead. **  
****  
****"**Vee are coming Echo!" Hanz shot forward, Hoffman's sword in hand looking like some Teutonic knight as he exited the alley and bumped directly into an oncoming group of a more then dozen Britanians back up by an odd looking armored car. **  
****  
****"**You there drop your weapon!" The leader of the group barked at Hanz as he reached for his weapon.**  
****  
****" **Nein!" Hanz roared as he once more stopped time itself moving his sword in arc that cut through the Brits wielding assault rifles. Rushing forward he noticed some of them were also carrying grenades, an evil smirk overtook the normally passive German engineer who been doing nothing more then creating knightmares these past few years. **  
****  
**These men were the reason he'd keep on living and building knightmares, tanks or whatever else his personal kaiser wished for, because Brtiania used such weapons to massacre civilians and thought nothing of policing civilians with wannabe soldiers wielding grenades.**  
****  
****"**Damn that kruat bastard and his cheating!" Hoff huffed as he rushed across the street to nearby cover behind a parked car, firing his shot gun in the hopes of taking the heat off Hanz.**  
****  
**Fritz and Henry surged forward next only to witness several Britanians blow up in a shower of gore, their compatriots looking on in panicked horror. **  
****  
**Only five Britanians remained, pouring fire in all directions not sure where to train their assualt rfiles, pistols or whatever else they'd been given to keep the locals in order. Inside the white tinted armored car a radio operator, driver and two officers where panicking. **  
****  
****"**Yes! Get knightmares out in force, doesn't matter how tired the pilots are, we're fighting a full blown insurrection here. Its...Its like shinjiko all over again! Get everyone here on the..."**  
****  
**The back door opened and in came a grenade. The radio operator who'd thought he'd been given a blessing rebasing to Lisbon from Area-Eleven could have sworn he heard a german accented voice say trick or treat before the world went white and Peter Clemons knew no more.**  
****  
**Hoffman and the rest of the fellowship could only stare, abandoning cover to stand and gawk at Hanz as he walked leisurely forward, armored car burning behind him illuminating his appearance. **  
****  
****"**We germans are not a war like people herr Hoffman, some of us it seems do have a knack for it. Let us hope he's done as well with the tanks and knightmare's as he has dispatching those Britanians." Fritz said hopefully. **  
****  
**Hoffman naturally chose to rain on the parade by walking forward to demand his sword back. A sword he'd later say made each of Hanz's kills half his own. Thus began the waffle fellowships body count competition. Hanz likened Hoffman's to jealous dwarf found in the fables of middle earth.**  
**

**INSIDE BOOTH**

Euphemia's wounds were grievous, her blood stained the floor, walls and equipment of the accursed booth she'd sought refuge in. Somewhere outside her foe was reloading and preparing to fire still more bullets into wooden tomb the former princess would soon leap from.

'No matter what happens I can't let myself be captured, can't let them touch me. Even if Bernie could save me again, I'm not sure I'd want him to' Euphemia mused as she dwelled on her remaining rounds of ammunition. Her eye's wandered to the very dead form of the Britanian soldier that had managed to make his way inside the booth, most likely someone's son, father and undoubtedly a friend to the man outside.

"You didn't give me a choice. I could've let myself be captured but I'm not that nieve, not like the sister Cornelia thinks she'll never see again." Euphemia said sadly, a lone tear running down her cheek. Her eye's gradually took on a hard look as they continued to bore into the corpse at her feet.

"Not like the sister Lulu geassed into massacring all those innocent people. The men, woman but especially the children deserved better, even if they had to give everything up to attain it." Euphemia thought as visions of Lelouch then Suzaku danced in her mind briefly.

Euphemia inspected her wounds, eye's looking away from her fallen enemy. She'd killed before under the guise of lacking free will. She'd murdered Bernard , the fabled magician who'd brought her back to life….yet in her mind it didn't count since he'd come back to pester her. This guard was dead and as Euphemia planned her last desperate attempt for a pyric victory she couldn't find regret.

"I don't know your name. But I know what you were doing, probably been doing for a long time now. That uniform, that flag, its responsible for so much pain. If I can stop that pain by taking your life then….then I'll become your terrorist." Euphemia spoke the words aloud with growing resolve.

The Britanian soldier's confidence had soured as the battle progressed, the lack of real retaliation a true sign of the skills, his opponenent could call on.

'Fucking Euro garbage thinks this battle was anything but certain. Britania always wins. Time to bring the curtain down on her sorry ass.' The soldier (get his name). thought darkly as he fired four shots at the booth, beginning to run toward the windowed section that by now had become a shattered excuse of its former self.

"I'm gonna kill you…."

Euphemia rolled out the booth's entrance haphazardly, pain and blood loss her only reward for her quick actions. With one leg out of commission she began to shoot up and use her other for support.

Charles caught sight of the terrorists short pink hair and sluggish movements, wasting no time he brought his gun away from the windows, the two of them barely barely three yards apart.

"Terrorist Bitch!"

"Monster!" Euphemia screamed at the same time.

The combatants pistols fired, the rounds sailing past one another to tear through the fabric and flesh of the duelists bringing to an end the horrid nightmare of the last few minutes.

Euphemia was falling forward.

'I feel so light. Will heaven take me until Bernie calls me back? If….if you see me big sister would you approve…approve of …'

"Fucking-A! You shot me you stupid bitch. James has been avenged none the less and when the rest of the guard get here we'll find the rest of your friends. Murder every single one of them…." The Britanian guard smirked as blood dripped from his lips, the man's breathing heavy.

The two Britanians lay scarce yards from one another, a short crawl and Euphemia could have relived her island adventure in a far less clean cut manner. Whatever strength to fashion a shard of glass or her own hands into weapons deserted her when the bullet tore into her chest. A raggedy mess of broken limbs and torn flesh was the only thing Cornelia would have seen had she come upon her sibling now.

'No! He can't be alive….that shot should have killed him.' Euphemia's mind screamed.

"chop them up in the public square. Britania…"

'Hanz, Hoffman, Fritz…and poor Henry. He's going to find them…Britania…the enemy is going to find my friends. Bernie please make this man go away….save the day and say something ridiculous like you always do.'

The sounds that peppered the air spoke of heavy fighting nearby. Perhaps a block or two away.

"Hear that Euro-whore. That's the great Britanian army crushing your friends into paste and spitting on the ashes of their charred corpses. Hehe. Hope your still breathing when they get here to _deal_ with you."

Words like rape, torture, superiority and injustice surfaced to the fog filled thing that was Euphemia's mind.

'They don't deserve this…they didn't deserve any of this. Running off like a school girl who's crush broke her heart. Suzaku….why did you join these people. So much death…maybe it was for me you stayed behind…please Suzaku if you find me don't continue fighting for my father. Fight for justice…fight for….' Euphemia thought, hoping in vain her thoughts might be heard by her love.' Euphemia mussed.

Rationality began to fail, vision began to cloud as her eyelids grew heavy, the coughing fits of her enemy the only sound that felt close.

"Pinke!"

Euphemia's eye's shot open.

"Huh? Bernie you came! I really tried Bernie….I did my best."

"Hey terrorist is your mind leaving you in the wake of your defeat? Who are you talking to?"

"Damn right I'm around to see my favorite pink headed partner in crime. Look at all this destruction! You don't mess around do you? Yep I bet mr. mask and cape is gonna shit himself when he see your joan of arc routine."

"Didn't she die in a fire? Bernie I don't understand…..why aren't you helping me. Please get away from that monster your standing over."

"But Pinkie this little dance isn't done! The fat lady hasn't popped out the window to sing a chorus….nor have I have found my beloved three little pigs and stuffed em in a blanket. Hmmmm. Denny's goodness."

"I'm about to die! Kill that monster!"

"Your fucking looney bitch. No one's going to kill a soldier of Britania and get away with it."

"She did my good fellow. Personally I've killed thousands, Spartans, Persians, Roman and English to boot. Tonight my apprentice your gonna have to finish the job…don't know if I can bring you back otherwise."

"You won't bring me back if I die?!"

"Life shouldn't be a game with infinite respawns and checkpoints. Their's no up, left, down, square, triangle combo to clear the level and demand more hot pockets. This guy…this monster." The magician said pointing down at the wounded Britanian soldier who's words no longer seemed to register to Euphemia's ear. "is your final boss."

"Bernie he was too good! I shot him but he's still alive, the rest of our fellowship has been killed."

"Do you see any bodies? No. This fancy pants murderer extrodinar is afraid. Those could be his men winning and marching to a drumbeat. But…" The magician said holding up his two index fingers to emphasize his next words.

"What if it's the Unicorn riding calvary coming over the mountain?"

"….Unicorns?"

"Yes! Riders are coming over the crest, their spears sharpened. Ten thousand unicorns in formation and every rider a member of our noble cause. The bonds of ellowship and love of justice may desert the hearts of the righteous waffle warriors but not today." The magician boomed charismatically.

A smile came to Euphemia lips, her eye's filled with tears at the thought of her friends winning against the evil she'd gone up against.

The magician pointed at her pistol that still sat in her hand, a solitary round remaining in the magazine. Ready to be chambered and sent on its way.

"Let's turn this Custer's last stand pitty party into a Rohan charge! Now show this Brit what your made of Echo." (maybe only use first part, not last sentence here).

"Alright Bernie. Can we eat some of that bacon your always on about when this is all over."

"Ain't no party like a bacon party cause a bacon party don't stuff."

"Good. Soldier can you hear me?" Euphemia asked.

The soldier seemed happy to finally be acknowledged. "Took your sweet time coming out of the clouds bitch. Afraid of the fate that awaites you yet? Trembling in guilt about killing my partner perhaps?"

"On the contrary." Euphemia said as she lifted her pistol and took aim at Charles Leoroy Jenkin the third's head.

Fear finally appeared on the Britanian soldier mixed with a hint of disbelief.

"You won't last long even if you kill me. Maybe a good word from me…could..could get you prison time instead of execution."

"You were boasting moments ago about the glory of Britania and how my friends had fallen in battle. Has it dawned on you that you don't know my friends? Their a lot stronger then I am or a thousand Britanian lapdogs like yourself. As a Britanian I should know."

"Impossible! No upstanding Britanian would shame themselves by throwing their lives away for terrorists."

"That's where your wrong. I've thrown my life away already, manipulated by Zero into becoming the monster everyone believes Britania to be."

"You…You knew Zero? That terrorist is as dead as your cause here is."

"My cause? My only reason for coming here and fighting you was because I saw injustice being comiited. Britania's cause seems to be that injustice on a great scale. Tonight I stopped you and tomorrow I'll stop you again. I'll stop my family from destroying the world and bringing misery for their own gain."

"Your family? What are you….."

"I Euphemia Li Britania hereby renounce all titles, nay renounce the country that bore this day forward I'll free the people…."

"The massacre princess! No! It can't be….your dead! Fucking dead in the ground…" The guard began to panic as he took in details of her face. The similarities began to pop out at him.

"A great teacher refused to give up on me. He's brought an army with him to this city and soon the Viceroy will be where you are now."

"Your…Your gonna die."

"Didn't you hear soldier? You don't deserve the name. Real soldiers fight for peace, family, to protect each other doing what they know to be true. I won't feel bad about what I'm going to do here…."

"Please…..I don't…."

"No one wants to die but you didn't care when you attacked that homeless man or the countless like him. The children who's lives you snuffed out in Shinjuko, the cities you burned….or the woman you raped."

"I'm sorry….I…."

"Your not sorry. You just think niave Euphemia Li Britania wouldn't kill an unarmed man, would just shrug and let all your crimes be washed away with pretty words. Zero likes pretty words, my brother lelouch Vi Britania thinks he can manipulate people to do his bidding, dressing it up as the knights for justice fighting the good fight."

Charles could only stare, mouth agape at the revelation of Zero's identity. That the greatest family on earth would spawn its greatest enemies made a sick kind of sense to the Britanian. They were the best in all they did….even treason.

"Suzaku thinks he's fighting the good fight….."

"That eleven who managed his way into the knights of the round?" The Britanian soldier asked flaberghasted these random dots all connected in a tangled web no one could escape.

"He's a _japanese_ knightmare pilot who loved me. Weather he'll love me after all this I don't know." Euphemia said, steadying her shallow breaths as her window for action began to close.

"Disgusting!"

"What's disgust are the people he's fighting for. My father will never let japan go….even if Suzaku reigns over it as his own, the people won't be free. As much as I love him, Suzaku's stopped fighting for good."

"So you and your filthy elven boyfriend are going to team up with your long lost brother ?"

"I'll Never fight for Lelouch. I'll never accept Japan when the whole world is crying out for freedom. Its what Bernie was trying to show me. I'm glad now I finally learned the lesson. Your about to learn yours."

"….Stupid bitch! Help! Somebody he…"

"Echo commands you…DIE!"

*BANG*

Charle's eye's stared blankly ahead, his skull smacking back against the paved road…a hole spilling brain and blood in a widening pool around Charles now still body.

'I did it….I got him.'

"You did it Pinkie! I'm so proud of you. The calvary's almost here, just hang on."

"I though…..thought you were the calvary." Euphemia wheezed as the corners of her vision darkened and her head began to feel heavy, slowly losing focus.

"Sorry." The magician shook his head and began to fade away.

"Come back…Bernie..Come…..back." Euphemia begged as her world turned to black and she knew no more.

AN: Finally have internet after a month at the new apartment. Sorry for the delay and hope the holidays were good for all.


	16. Chapter 16

**ECHO CHAPTER 16**

_**45**_

For forty-five days Euphemia Li Britannia lay bandaged, broken and surrounded. The faces that greeted her where of her friends, Hanz, Fritz, the sword wielding Henry or her current company, Sergeant Hoffman.

"Do you think Bernie's in trouble Hoff? Its been so long since we've heard anything...and everything on the news points to Britannia readying for war. My father's been just as reclusive but at least he addressed the empire about _our_ battle." Euphemia worried with a sigh.

Her eye's scanned the bare room, someone's unused guest bedroom turned into a makeshift infirmary. Her arms and legs lay in casts, the pain numbed with drugs while doctors spoke of recovery in cryptic terms, Euphemia knew better.

'Thinking your always going to have someone there to patch you up is what got me here. Bernie wouldn't abandon me, he'd fix everything just like that night when I met this man, this Sergeant Hoffman. Where would he go though? Is this a test...am I still not good enough?" Euphemia thought.

Euphemia's musing were cut short as the Sergeant in her thoughts began to reply to her questions, just as he had done so every day for the past forty-six days without fail.

"Afraid its been nothing but silence. The bases we have around the world haven't reported any mad-hatters checking in, nor has the boss sprung any surprises for the Brits. Unless someone nasty's gotten to the grey eye'd magician, but we'd have felt that."

This was new. In all their talks Hoffman, nor anyone else in their fabled fellowship from that night in Lisbon ever offered up the possibility someone might have it out for their eccentric leader. The crazy bastard had the usual suspects of course, be they Britannia or shadowy order that practiced Geass much like the one Euphemia found herself in. Fritz had explained the magician's biggest enemy lay somewhere in china with a force that could rival armies given the time. The magician simply wouldn't go down however, he always popped back up again ready for whatever the world threw his way, be they tidal waves, Knightmare frames or most deadly of all, a horny elephant charging over the Italian alps with the magicians bum his prime target.

The magician hadn't been able to go a circus in centuries without a panic attack. He'd laugh at the clowns, be amazed by the jugglers, yet the Elephants sent him into catatonic mutterings about the pachyderms murderous sexual intent.

"What do you mean you'd _feel_ it if Bernie died?" Euphemia asked?

Hoffman quickly banished the thought of _Dumbo the pimp, _to explain a drawback that haunted everyone Euphemia had met since her resurrection, including herself.

"When the magician mentioned to you how you were brought back, did he ever caution you against attacking him?" Hoffman asked, hand reaching for a flask concealed within his coat pocket. He needed a drink on occasions such as these.

"Yes, Bernie said that if I...well I was mad at him at the time so I didn't care, but Isortofkilledhim withagiant rock!" Euphemia said hurriedly, embarrassed about the whole incident on the island all those weeks back.

"You spoke too fast your highness, you made it sound like you killed the magician with a rock, did you?" Hoffman asked, a small smile tugging on his lips.

"...Yes. I stabbed his hand through the bone and impaled it in the dirt but before pushing a large rock atop his head. I'm sorry for that...if I'd known him better, like I know all of you now I wouldn't have done those things." A lone tear fell from Euphemia's right eye, which Hoffman dabbed with a cloth.

"Its alright Echo. I'm sure what happened then and now have no connection, save what I'm about to reveal to you. In time you'll notice it anyway so I shouldn't keep you in the dark. Its wouldn't be right of us or him...though he's tried to tell you already." Hoffman soothed.

"Tell me what?"

"The magician uses Geass and other powers we aren't sure of, since he tells so little of them beyond vague explanations, but the result is you and I come back to life. We don't age as far as I can tell, we gradually just sort of lose everything else and stay with the magician's whacky schemes for lack of anything else left int this world."

"But...that's so sad Hoffman...surely Bernie could bring your family or someone else back..."

"We didn't exactly leave on the best of terms they and I. We're safe you and I...some of the eldest among our ranks not so much. A few days ago Raxix Selus, an old soldier recruited in Bactria fell into a coma and died soon thereafter."

Euphemia reached out to hold Hoffman's hand, her efforts in vain as he drew back at the last second.

"The magician would always brag about knowing the future, sometimes saying there were more then one present." Hoffman began to explain before Euphemia cut him off.

"But that's just silly, the future is what we make it, even its not always the one we dreamed of." Euphemia sullenly remembered discovering Lulu was very much alive, that rather then live with his family the brother, one time crush, had opted to shoot and kill her.

Her companion chuckled down at her, the remaining innocence brought on by ignorance gave him pause. Wondering if she should know the truth had never entered into the equation. The question was what Euphemia would do with the the truth.

She was dying. They all were dying.

The sudden knocking sound caused both Euphemia and Hoffman to turn in the direction of the doorway. The appearance of the engineer turned soldier then turned waffle fellowship aficionado greeted them.

"Hanz! Your back, its been so long, where did you go? Do you know where Bernie's disappeared to."

"Nein." The german engineer said suddenly grim despite the smile he'd just sported not a second ago in the doorway.

"Oh...then did you find anything else out?" Euphemia said, her eye's looking at her bandaged legs.

"Yeah. Fritz has smuggled in more Reaper's for us to use should your former countrymen attack as they seem to want to."

"...Reapers? Those are those knightmare you and Fritz built together aren't they, you showed me one of them before back at the Garage in Lisbon I think. What did you mean by former countrymen?"

"Well you don't consider yourself Britannia after all you've been through do you?"

This question made the gears in Euphemia's head spin a little faster, the notion of herself as being either Britanian or Princess had indeed fallen away. Before the physical therapy all she could was sit in this accursed room and think. Thinking about Suzaku, about her brother's and sisters. She wanted to run to them, a part of her would always care for them...but whenever she thought of those that had been closest she began to feel sick, angry and frustrated.

Lelouch had been abandoned along with poor Nunnally, left to die in japan as bombs rained down. Their father had allowed them all to be killed...or so everyone believed. Euphie hadn't dared believed the masked terrorist could be her brother, if only because the heart break she would have felt had she been wrong.

In the years between those moments however, of loss and discovery, her sister Cornelia had grown colder with each promotion. Looking back Euphie hated that she hadn't asked questions, that she'd been naive. Cooped up in a hospital bed along with everything else she'd been shown about Lelouch and Suzaku had given her reason enough to look into her sister.

Without Bernie, the grey eyed magician to give order, countless hackers and sympathetic third parties poured over Britanian intelligence reports, classified documents and orders Cornelia had personally given both in and outside Japan.

A whole town in Iceland leveled. Civilian casualties two-thousand-four-hundred-sixty. Crime? Someone spray painted a portrait of Charles Zi Britannia. In the jungles of South Britannia, what had once been Brazil played host to the elimination of the terrorist group _Eternal Bolivar. _Seeking to free southern Britannia from the Northern continent after it had been annexed over the previous hundred years. Reports spoke of three-thousand dead terrorists, however Euphemia was horrified that to cut them off from escape, Cornelia had set aflame the surrounding forest as well metropolitan city, killing upwards of two-hundred-thousand.

Cornelia was never this crazed bloodhound around Euphemia, Euphemia wouldn't have believed any of this had she not been through Lisbon, not been shot and raped for bearing witness to the cruelty of the family and state she'd been raised in.

Clearing her throat she spoke calmly and deliberately.

"No."

"Vhat?"

"I'm not like them. I don't hate people for being different, would never..." Euphemia wanted to say slaughter but the memories of the stadium and her brothers actions continued to stain her hands and soul.

"Relax Euphemia. Hanz, I was just explaining our relationship to the Magician and his possible absence."

"Oh ist that all? Did you explain the multiverse to her or how without the magician in this plane of existence we are all doomed?" Hanz asked nonchalantly.

"Doomed?! Multiverse? Could you maybe explain this to me Hanz, starting with how you came to know Bernie?"

"Well back in Eighteen-hundred-and-Six I was an engineer in the Prussian Army fighting against Napoleon Bonaparte. Upon a chance meeting with the magician he discovered my mother was deathly ill at the time. Today we call that illness cancer and it should have killed her..."

"But Bernie saved her didn't he?" Euphemia asked, a smile appearing on her face.

"For a time yes, but in exchange I had to be _ his man in Germany, unbeknownst_ to me I'd come to team up with Fritz some time later. Another story I'm afraid."

"Awww. I bet that was a match made in heaven. You two work so well together whenever I've witnessed you both, even if your at polar opposites."

"Yes I supposed we are. I have faith in the old ways, of tanks and cannon supporting infantry even agains the metal behemoths Britannia has unleashed. Fritz wishes to _Knightmare rush_ our foes into oblivion." Hanz commented jokingly.

"They are awfully strong aren't they...I'm not sure what any of us could have done if we'd faced them in Lisbon." Euphemia pondered.

Not sure exactly when it first started, she'd come to refer to herself as belonging with the rest of the magicians motley crew. If Suzaku stormed into the room right now, she wasn't sure she'd go with him, wasn't sure she could forgive Lelouch, certainly not their common father.

"Getting back on track here. I'll explain the multiverse...though I believe the Magician would've mentioned something about steroid filled pigs and robotic chickens. Consider each important event has multiple outcomes, each outcome is its own branching universe."

"So...there's a Euphemia that didn't shoot up the stadium, Nunnally that can walk and see, maybe even a world where all these problems don't exist."

"Yeah mein Fraulein, that is correct. Other branching universes are even more diverse, genders switched, leaders like Napoleon and nations like the European Union never rising to prominence. Hoffman and Henry are well aware of such events." Hanz said nodding to Hoffman to explain.

"Here and now we have a Britanian Empire occupying Japan while making ready to bring the rest of the world in line with one, perhaps two massive wars. Events like the victory of Napoleon and the failure of George Washington to liberate America are both the work of Geass users manipulating events. We're not simply a number on a six sided die, we're an entirely different color. This was explained by the Magician when he started showing me artifact, books, music, newspapers. The underlying theme was that Britannia didn't exist in any of them, that the United States even when it's revolution failed in other timelines never became Britannia."

"So...everything we are...everything I am...its all a lie?"

"Of course Not Euphy. This world we have is ours, a world without your pink locks wouldn't be much of world would it?" Hoffman chuckled, sliding a photo to Euphemia.

Euphemia's eye's widened in shock, small drops of water fell on the photograph as her hands tightened around its edges afraid to let go. In the photo Euphemia along with Cornelia, Nunnally, Mariane the flash and Lelouch were all standing besides one another with Clovis in the middle of the family photo, Clovis seeming to be sitting down at a small table between them all unwrapping art supplies. The date on the photo showed Twenty-Eighteen, Clovis's own hand writing clearly recognizable, spelled _birthday_.


	17. Chapter 17

**HOSPITAL ROOM, SPAIN**

"The magician brought this back while you were still recovering from being resurrected from the grave. I'm not sure if he planned to give it to you but under the circumstance you have a right to know that things can get better...are better somewhere. That all this horrible shit isn't..."

"Language Her Sergeant." Hanz chastised.

"Sorry. The Geass order has been working with the Britanian Empire covertly to uncover various ruins through out the world, their purpose unknown."

"Thank you."

"Excuse me?"

"Thank you for telling me about where the magician's been going. If he's stuck somewhere trying to get out then we have to hope he'll rejoin us soon. This picture is the life we could have had together, that somewhere this me hasn't gone through the horrors of this world. It makes me smile. I"m jealous Hoff, Hanz, but knowing this happiness exists makes our next move clear." Euphemia said hope filling her voice before becoming resolute at the end of her declaration.

"Our next move Prinzessin?" Hanz asked caught off guard by Euphemia change it attitude as well as her next move which involved struggling to free herself from the bed.

"Let me..." Hoffman began before Euphemia cut him off.

"No! I can do this, you've had doctors and nurses helping me exercise these last few weeks, I'm well enough to move around even if I need a cane to do it." Euphemia stated with all the authority of her royal upbringing. She rose slowly off the bed, sucking in her breath as she seemed to rise in one great stride to stand unsteadily, hand grasping a nearby table for balance while the other fetched a cane.

'If there is a me out there that's having a birthday with the rest of the royal family then is she aware of this hell on earth her people are creating? Does she care or is she ignorant as I was until Bernie brought me back?' Euphemia thought.

Suddenly the picture didn't seem happy nor joyous at all. It was a mask, a facade supported by equal parts ignorance and indifference. Maybe Bernie, the gray eye'd magician wouldn't appear to open that Euphemia's eye's but the one here in the hospital room was no longer blind to the suffering of the people of the world. With everything Hoffman and Hanz had spoken of, their was no telling how long any of them would be around if the magician never reappeared, thus leaving the world at the mercy of Britanian Empire and those like Zero.

Euphemia became angry at the cruel joke fate had decided to play on her until an idea struck her.

'There's still time!'

"Hanz!"

"um yes fraulin?"

"How many knightmares do we have?"

"There are around five or so at this base, with more scattered around Spain and the EU. Total we have a few hundred in storage. However Prinzessen there are four hundred tanks and around a thousand other pieces of military equipment within this region of the EU." Hanz said puffing out his chest.

"But we don't have the manpower to operate them all! Euphemia we should..."

"We'll get the manpower Hoff. Tell Henry to get in touch with the local resistance fighters in Portugal and any mercenaries."

"Mercenaries mein Fraulin? How will we pay for them?"

"If Bernie isn't coming back then he won't mind if we dip into his savings account, especially the one set up for...bacon of all things."

Both men in the makeshift hospital room sweat dropped at the thought of the magicians reaction, should he ever return.

"Was sind Sie alle grafische Darstellung? Was hat die Prinzessin uns soll tun entschieden, nun da unser Führer von der Szene gegangen wird?" a cheerful german voice asked as none other then Fritz entered the room with the previously mentioned Henry following behind.

"Umm...what did he just say?" Euphemia asked confused as she looked from Hanz to Fritz and back.

While she'd learned a few words here and there these past few days, she doubted she'd ever be fluent in german enough to carry on conversation with the two gifted german engineers.

"_What are you all plotting? What has the princess decided we shall do now that our leader is gone from the scene? _Iswhat Fritz said." Hanz supplied. Understanding dawning on Euphemia.

Though both engineers spoke english, they none the less never wasted an opportunity to drop into their native tongue, occasionally peppering their english with german vocabulary. Euphemia had to laugh at their little quirks. This whole group was feeling more like a family with each day removed from japan and the Britanian nobility.

'Guess their really is life after death huh brother Clovis' Euphemia mused as she steeled one last look at the picture discarded on her now empty bed. Turning back to her assembled fellowship, Euphemia began to lay the ground work for one last hurrah before they all faded from the earth.

"We're going to War Fritz. But we'll need resources and allies first."

"The Prinzzessen is correct, Henry we were just saying how you'd be wunderful at bringing mercenaries to our side."

"That will help but Hoffman and myself both know a more direct approach if we're planning to head back to portugal."

"What would that be Henry?" Euphemia asked.

'I'm so lucky to know these two people, their almost like Suzaku in a way. Always rushing to help me, this kind of scheming would probably suite Lulu better though.'

"He's talking about getting the remnants of the Portuguese Liberation Front together for a meeting, once we show them what we're bringing to the table, they might risk a full scale uprising."

Euphemia grimaced, remembering the countless reports she'd read about her sister's own actions when it came to uprisings. To say nothing of the defiance the japanese people had shown, even when they'd done the opposite, Clovis had still bathed Shinjuku in blood.

"If we can convince them to help us then we'll also have to set aside resources to get as many people away from the fighting as we can, I won't have civilians killed in the cross fire." Euphemia declared.

The faces that stared back at exchanged glances with one another before Hoffman broke into the fray.

"We all want that Euphemia...but in war sometimes collateral damage, especially in a city-wide uprising is unavoidable. Many will go, many more will convince themselves to sit it out in shelters or lock their doors and pretend what's going on can't touch them."

Euphemia looked at Hoffman before reaching out and bringing her left hand to rest on Hoffman's shoulder, the man in question feeling some anxiety at her touch.

"I know that ok? I'm not a naive princess like before, especially after all we've been through together. Just promise me you'll try to save as many as you can before the fighting starts."

Resolve took old of Hoffman and he stood a little straighter as he nodded in the affirmative. Euphemia withdrawing her hand with a smile on her face. No matter what happened she promised herself she wouldn't throw the people of Lisbon nor those in this room away like pawns.

'I'm not like Lulu. No matter what happen's I'll never let Echo and Zero become two sides of the same coin.' Euphemia mentally vowed.

"hmm. Though Hanz ist in favor of more _traditional_ forces, I believe that if we utilize a system we devised not long ago for artificial soldiers, we may be able to bring a hundred or more knightmares without throwing away lives piloting inferior models that compose most of our stock."

"What's he talking about Hanz?"

"While mercenaries and the PLF will work for traditional ground combat, they'll be cut to pieces by Glasgows or the newer knightmares Britania is rolling out of its factories. We can't throw away our best pilots nor those of our allies if we can simply create machine soldiers in their place."

"Machine soldiers?"

"Yes, sometime ago we utilized artificial knightmare operating protocol to command several decades old knightmares to defeat an equal number of glasgows, also artificially controlled. They simply had a better operating system then the newer knightmares. Imagine it, each new machine we build having the tenacity of a knight of the round!"

"Can you really do that?!" Euphemia asked flabbergasted.

"...Nein. We are getting closer with each new iteration of das system however. The latest build ist named ice cream sandwich and it shall give the Britanians indigestion I'm am sure."

"Don't forget my komerad that we could use that system on the tanks and personal carriers should Hoffman and Henry here fall through."

And just like that it became a competition between the two englishmen (technically Britanians like Euphemia), and their German companions. Both teams turning to Euphemia for confirmation to run off and begin their tasks.

Euphemia smiled.

"Alright then, together this day we vow to liberate Portugal. Operation overlord will commence within the week, for now I'll focus on preparing for the meeting with PLF and one more thing..."

The four men looked at their princess and now official leader awaiting her next command.

"Just call me Echo from now on when we're not amongst just ourselves."

**THE MEETING: THREE DAYS LATER**

**LISBON PLF SAFEHOUSE**

"_Será que podemos confiar neles?" _asked the PLF soldier as he viewed the approaching convoy of vehicles nearing the warehouse.

The sentiment was shared by at least two dozen other soldiers that concealed themselves as best they could. The Britanians had been moving more and more equipment, especially Sutherland's and Gloucester's.

They'd been sending out messages to their comrades back in Spain and Brussels, yet no one in the European Union believed anything out of place.

Now a group had come forward promising quite boldly, that they would do for Portugal what the Black Knights had nearly done for Area Eleven otherwise known as Japan.

Former EU General and commander of the remnants of the Portuguese Liberation Front Alfonso de Pinto sighed before repeating the words of his bodyguard.

"Can we trust them?"

Meanwhile inside the car which carried Euphemia Li Britania, now known as Echo to those outside the rapidly growing circle that was the magicians private army, anxiety was threatening to engulf the former monarch.

It had all seemed so easy to put into words back in the hospital room.

'It feels like a life time ago that I was standing up for myself...for a better world. Now when it actually comes time to set things in motion there are butterflies in my stomach. Lulu did you feel these conflicting emotions when you started down your dark path or was hate enough for you?' Euphemia mentally agonized over her brothers own transformation.

A gentle squeeze on both her shoulders from two familiar faces brought her out of her reverie.

"Cheer up Euphie, we'll have the support of the PLF weather they want to drag this out or not, otherwise the Brits will launch their war and its over for the Euro's as a whole." Hoffman stated matter a factly.

"That's right Echo, you've just got to win them over. You've already rallied the rest of our little family to this one last hurrah. What's a few thousand Portuguese next to that? Heh." Henry said with a smile that beamed true admiration.

Fritz and Hanz where here as well, riding in the largest vehicle of the bunch, the flatbed semi-trailer. Wrapped under a tarp was a very special gift Euphemia had insisted the two give the PLF. The two germans had practically cried at having to give their pride and joy over to the Europeans the minute it rolled off the assembly line.

"Do you really think it will be that easy for us?" Euphemia asked.

Henry's smile disappeared and the man's eye's locked with Euphemia's, the look of doubt flashing in her eye's was reflected in the Henry's own. Then the man spoke.

"After what you went through here, that night at the apartments, those goons in the alley. The shit you've seen, the things you've done and had done to you. For you to be here now in this car going off to lead negotiations for the biggest assault on the Britanians since Tokyo. Euphemia there is no one I'd rather have leading me into battle." Henry finished his declaration, pride and determination filling his voice at the end.

"Your...your sure about that Henry?"

"Damn right he is love. Their are men and woman who've fought alongside the Spartans, worn the legionnaire uniform for Rome, marched for and against Napoleon. These proud soldiers, with hundreds or even thousands of years experience in the art of war have lined up behind you Euphie, your smile, your courage and the way you cast aside your wounds, puts you on equal footing with those that lead them before...puts you above Zero."

Had Lelouch ever fought in battle? Euphemia hadn't considered it, nor had she considered how truly ancient or vast the army the gray eye'd magician had assembled. He'd called it the greatest collection of human spirt and tenacity on earth, Now with him gone, Euphemia would unleash its pent up wrath upon Britania. First Euphemia needed...no, _wanted_ allies.

'Lulu...if the only one you ever shot on your own was a brainwashed princess allowing herself to be killed, then I've already surpassed the great zero you show off to the world.' Euphemia thought with satisfaction and a touch of anger tempering her earlier joy.

Euphemia Li Britania, now Echo, had been stranded on an island, raped, shot, resurrected again, shot at again before killing her attackers and overcoming her injuries.

'The Portuguese are a piece of cake!' Euphemia mused confidently in a way Euphemia the princess or the hostage or Viceroy never would have.

Maybe its because Euphemia wasn't here today. Echo was and she was already greater then Zero before the real battle's hadn't even commenced.

Amongst the PLF contingent waiting to greet their prospective allies, two guards stood on either side of the General Pinto with the red haired captain Arlena Schroeder close by his side.

"Wonder what's under that tarp?" General Pinto asked gesturing toward the flatbed in question as it came to a stop, the rear most escort car swerving into an angled stationary position near the entrance to the warehouse parking space.

"If its anything that's even remotely a threat, I've got two teams with rockets ready to go General." the female captain assured her old friend and superior officer. Her home back in Ireland had been given up for a _temporary_ peace. Not a soul in Brussels seemed to understand that fact, nor in Paris, Berlin or Warsaw. The Russians were the only members being properly paranoid, though with borders that touch the Chinese Federation as well as the Britanian Empire, it was little wonder why.

The Irish officer's attention was brought to bear on the lead car that had first entered the warehouse area, now coming to a stop not ten yards away. The driver was the first to exit, the man wore all black, ski mask obscuring his face, submachine gun clutched tightly in both hands. Arlena reluctantly looked away when their eye's met, for the eye's that boar into her soul where those of a trained assassin, a cold veteran that had taken many lives and promised to take her's if this meeting went awry. There was something feral in the man's demeanor she couldn't place though she would never have believed the truth.

Long before the invention of the combustion engine or the american continent, Acacius had pulled a wounded Alexander the Great from his dead horse as the Indian hordes ploughed toward them on elephants. To such a man who could feel his breath become heavy with each passing day, the woman and aged man in uniform posed no challenge, should they wish to change that, he would act. Euphemia was worth it, Echo was worth it.

Exiting from the passenger seat both front and back came three more men, one even wielding a sword of all things. The masked one of the bunch moved to the trunk while the driver remained standing and alert. The two men took up flanking positions on either side of an empty space as the last remaining occupant of the car exited gracefully from the back seat and began to stride forward to meet the Arlena and the General.

"Quem é essa mulher e por que ela esconde o rosto por trás da máscara de um fox?" General Pinto asked as he spied the trio moving in his direction.

Arlena couldn't help thinking the same as her General. Who was this woman and why did she hide her face behind the mask of a fox?

Clearing her throat Euphemia spoke with as much authority as she could muster, her grace a product of quick injection of pain killers that dulled her still fresh wounds faint pains. She doubted she'd ever dance like she had at court, assuming she ever wished to dance with the sorts of people she'd known in her _other_ life. Where some saw noble's, aristocrats, royalty Euphemia could now see only enablers and those who carried out the task of maintaining a system of murder and hatred, inequality and corruption the overseer of which was her father the Emperor.

She'd thrown the silly mask on at the last minute, it was stupid she realized to think it held a candle to the Zero suite her brother had worn but she wasn't sure she wouldn't be recognized. Even with her hair cut short, her scars still fresh, a part of her wondered if she didn't need this mask to go the extra mile and play the part of Echo. Though it really wasn't playing when her actual name was tied to mass murder and betrayal.

"General Alfonso de Pinto, its a pleasure to meet you at last. My name is Echo, these men are my associates and in case your wondering, that tarp conceals our gift to the Portugese Liberation Front. One of many in fact."

"I must admit .."

"Echo is fine General. Like Zero I'm unable to use my real name. As it stands in light of his _many_ failures, the people require a new symbol." Euphemia corrected the man, as well as explaining away her mask.

"Pshh. You expect the Brits to take a girl in a fox mask seriously? This girl is daft sir, she can't be more then Seventeen or Eighteen years of age!"

Euphemia turned to Arlena, her eye's glaring daggers at the red head irish woman who was counseling the Portugese General against her.

'I need Allies and this red head is ruining my credibility with the General. What can I do?' Euphemia thought hastily.

"I didn't know age determined a person's willingness to fight for what's right. Nor did the Britanians I killed in Lisbon. My wounds are a source of constant pain yet I'm here before you General Pinto to beg your aid in toppling a mad man's chaos before it engulf's anyone else. But pretty words and a few bullet wounds aren't enough for someone like you, someone who's seen more fighting then I hope I ever will. Even my _gifts _may not convince you. Perhaps this will!" Euphemia shouted out the last part of her speech and with a clatter the mask was thrown away to reveal Euphemia's face, Echo's face, to all at the meeting.

Gasps escaped a few soldiers, Pinto's bodyguards making to draw for their weapons. Hoffman and Henry doing much the same before Euphmia raised her hand to stop them.

"My name is Echo and I am of the nationality you call Britanian. My parents are dead, my sister lost to me along with everything else I once held dear. I've loved a man who's only crime was being a number, but most of all I've fought in battle against those who look and speak as I do. If there is any doubt to my determination, my sacrifice or my wish to see the Portugese people, nay the people of the world free of Britanian rule then take my life." Euphemia boomed theatrically before taking Hoffman's sword from its sheath and offering it to the general, the blade hovering above her heart.

Arlena's eye's had gone wide as dinner plates and pink haired girls antics, General Pinto seemed to weigh the girls words, his hand having reached forward briefly before he withdrew it.

'Esta menina tem mais coração, em seguida, metade dos soldados na Europa e mais inteligência, em seguida, aqueles que se sentam em Paris.' General Pinto thought to himself somewhat awestruck by the young woman's passion.

Had the magician been around he would have told Euphemia General Pinto's thoughts. Undoubtedly amused at how impressed the General was with a woman who'd once run naked down the back alley's of Paris in search of shelter.

'This girl has more heart then half the soldiers in Europe and more brains then those who sit in Paris!'

"Ha! Do you hear that boys? If we had more soldiers and like yourself and half the politicians, we'd never have been reduced to a gurilla force as we stand today. Welcome Echo, unlike Britanians or their system I do not look down on others simply for where they were born."

Eupehmia beamed a smile and slowly exhaled as Hoffman and Henry relaxed, Hoffman more then a little shocked Euphemia had briefly offered up his sword as the tool of her demise.

" That is good to hear General. I stopped thinking of myself as Britanian long ago. Shall we retire inside the warehouse so my soldiers and I may brief you on our plans to aid you?"

"Certainly Echo. While all you've said is true, in the future perhaps it would be better if you wore a mask all the same. The people need their symbols and old hatreds are not easily set aside."

"Thank you General. Lead the way, I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear what we can do together rather then apart."

As the trio walked into the warehouse where still more PLF soldiers stood guard alongside rows of crates and various weapon systems, more then a few shot dirty looks Euphemia's way.

'They may not see the massacre princess but they see something almost as bad. One of her people. Perhaps I'll wear a mask physically as well...bet you never had to reveal yourself like this huh Lulu?' Euphie thought somberly.

Taking their seats at a plain collapsible table set up in the middle of the warehouse floor, the Portugese General's assistant opened the meeting.

"We of the Portugese Liberation open the meeting with the fellow resistance cell..."

Euphemia held up a hand. Her voice drawing those around her to listen in.

"We are not resistance cell, nor are we terrorists or members of any country's armed forces. I'm sorry if you've been mislead to believe otherwise Captain Schroeder." Euphemia stated matter of factly, her smile doing nothing to alleviate the sudden tension in the room.

'Who are these people? Are they really trustworthy?' Arlena mused as she cast glances to the elevated walkways where snipers laying flat in position to take out their _guests_.

"Forgive me but then who are you Echo? Who are they?" General Pinto asked motioning with head in the direction of Euphemia's driver and other soldiers waiting outside.

Euphemia breathed in deeply, looking directly into the older Portugese General's eye's she responded seriously.

"We are an army, General. We are the army that is going to destroy Britania once and for all." Euphemia declared standing suddenly causing the PLF to tense up, their trigger fingers itchy.

"So lass, your just another Zero wannabe, we've had plenty of them filling the news, each one quartered and shot faster then the last."

Euphemia came around to the side of the table, between the two party's. Holding out her hand to Hoffman, her companion produced a rolled up sheet of paper.

"Thank you Captain Hoffman." Hoffman blushing at Euphemia's gloved fingers touching his own for the briefest of moments.

Unfurling the paper and allowing Henry and Hoffman to hold it still, a PLF aid likewise doing the same on his side of the table.

The map was of Europe with three arrows drawn heading inward through the European Union like Daggers.

"If you must call us something then call us Force Z, for the time being. My superiors and colleagues have a vast army at the ready to do battle with the Britanian Empire. Unlike Lu...Zero, we are not tied to any nation. Not Japan, the Union or even your beloved Portugal."

The General and the PLF were incredulous. How could an army be vast enough to take on Britania yet have no nation or politicians to lend support or draw orders from?

"Your a rogue without any master to restrain you is that it? Sounds more like a Brit wench blowing smoke up her own..." Arlena accused before General Pinto jumped into the fray.

"That is quite enough captain Schroeder!" Pinto hushed his second in command forcefully.

Euphemia simply smiled.

'I hope this works...and no one ends up hurt because I'm pulling stunts like Lulu.'

"That's alright General...if its proof you require.." Euphemia stated, grabbing her black uniform's collar and leaning forward to speak into a hidden microphone.

"Willkommener Fritz und Hanz." Euphemia stated in accented german.

Captain Arlena Schroeder took precious seconds to remember what little german she'd learned long ago from fellow EU troops in the last conflict with the Britanian Empire.

These precious seconds were all it took.

The entrance of the warehouse suddenly fell apart as a knighmare frame, the one that had been securely tied to the flatbed outside, made its way forward toward the now helpless PLF soldiers and its leadership.

'She's betrayed us! This pink haired Brit bitch laid a trap and she's going to get the general because we allowed ourselves to be duped!' Arlena's mind screamed as she drew her pistol, bringing it up half way to Euphemia's head before the captain felt cold_ sharp_ metal against her neck.

"Versuchen Sie es nicht Irishes Schwein." The german assailant Arlena guessed to be either the Hanz or Fritz Echo had mentioned when she spoke into her _concealed_ communicator.

'How?! So fast! Where are the snipers?' Arlena's panicked. Casting glances back at where she'd once seen her faithful fellow soldiers, she now only saw slumped bodies laying still.

"You killed them!" Arlena accused.

"I've killed no one here today captain Schroeder. Those men are unconscious as are those outside this building. You doubt my words so I'm doing the only thing I can in the time we've got available before Britania strikes, claiming more innocent lives."

"Bullocks! Their laying dead still...and even with your Hun friend here I can still put one in you..." the defiant PLF captain proclaimed.

Euphemia shook her head.

'This is really hard. To do these things...to act like Lulu even if my goals are different from his. But I can't stop...if I do then they won't listen or worse we'll find ourselves shunned. They want strength...then its a blessing my big sister is who she is. Hopefully I'm not far off...' Euphemia thought as she steeled herself and controlled her breathing. She couldn't betray her growing anxiety, unless she really wanted someone to end up dead.

"No you won't. You don't have a weapon to carry out your threats I'm afraid." Euphemia stated matter a factly.

"Like hell I don't...I'll" Alrena shot back making to pull the trigger, her finger meeting only air."

"How! I'm disarmed? We were just talking...We...What is this sorcery?!" Arlena spoke rapidly, sweat running down her body as she took a step backward and realized her assailant was no longer behind her.

"Up hier Frau Schroeder!" a german voice called down as Captain Arlena Schroeder could only fall on her ass in shock.

"You...You...You. How ? Up there so fast without me seeing you move...that's impossible."

Euphemia cleared her throat before turning back to General Pinto.

"As you can see General, we are far more powerful then our appearance suggests. That's only one of the reasons we'll win this war."

"You very impressive Echo. Taking over the meeting at gunpoint, making use of some unknown method to incapacitate my soldiers. What are the other reasons since I have little choice but to listen."

'Just go over this like you did with Henry and Hoff.'

"Thank you for your attention General, I'll apologize to each of your men when this is through. The second reason is this file here as well as everything it contains copied onto this flash drive." Euphemia stated pulling the file from a suitcase Henry produced that Pinto was sure he hand't entered the warehouse with, the flash drive came from between Echo's cleavage. The general looked away flustered.

'Its good he isn't a dirty old man...and Bernie didn't see any of this, he'd never let me hear the end of it.'

"Its the only place I was fairly sure a gentlemen like yourself wouldn't have me searched. I'm glad it proved unnecessary...I'll keep them in my pocket in the future."

"Just get on with it. What is on that flash drive...or that file sitting there on the table."

Euphemia let a smile appear on her face, a Cheshire cat smile that told the General something big was about to be revealed. Echo had a secret and she wished to tell someone before she exploded from all the excitement.

"Those are Britania's military plans for the invasion of the European Union. All three attack forces, their commanders and their equipment listed in a long boring appendix your welcome to read through. Their tactics, spies and goals are also listed within those two objects." Euphemia declared happily. Much more the happy schoolgirl she'd been when visiting Ashford academy...if only briefly.

'What's with the change in attitude? No matter...if those are real then...' Pinto thought before ignoring his surrounding and lunging for the file, tearing it open like a man possessed flipping through the pages and skimming information that damned the Britanian Prime minister's talk of peace and routine maneuvers.

He knew what he had to do. In his heart and in his gut the seasoned warrior's intuition told him this information was real.

Echo began to speak, interrupting the Generals intake of information and contemplation.

"They are coming at in attempt to knock the russians out early. We have forces in Moscow and Novgorod that are mobilizing." Euphemia's finger pointing out the Russian cities one at a time.

"From their recently acquired Area Eighteen, the Middle Eastern Federation, their moving in a two pronged attack against the EU member states of Turkey and Russia. We have forces ready to sabotage supply centers and rally whatever is left of the MEF's army."

The General nodded as Euphemia's finger shifted west to land on their current where bouts. Lisbon.

"In this city sits a despotic and corrupt baron, a viceroy in all but name. Perhaps with time he hoped to create Area Nineteen with the addition of Spain. We'll have to disappoint him."

General Pinto nodded enthusiastically as the bombshell this intelligence report would create, never mind the thought of more soldiers like the one's he was meeting with joining the fray.

"Bases in Morocco will deploy knighmares and strike teams from the South. From the East within Spanish territory, Britanian forces will be assaulted by tanks and three dozen knightmare frames like the one you see before you." Euphemia said turning to point at the mechanical humanoid.

"What is this Knightmare your showing me Echo?" General Pinto asked perplexed when he couldn't recognize the design or origin.

"This is our first Alpha model _Reaper. _Its capable of maintaing an elevation of thee-thousand feet with its float system for twenty minutes. When it approaches it can open up with a heavy cannon firing over a one-hundred-twenty shots before its done. When that happens and all seems lost, the Reaper can still fight in close quarters with our patented beam scythe."

"Beam scythe?" Pinto asked.

"Imagine a sword or knife fashioned entirely from a lasers light. That's the best I can explain it...even then I'm probably wrong. You'll have to ask Fritz or Hanz when the battle is over. For now lets call it our personal touch on the battlefield."

"Such power..." Pinto stared as the Reaper's piloted brought the beam scythe online for show. Appearing as a metal pole or cylinder before activating with a snap-hiss. The General didn't doubt the thing could cut through a Sutherland or Gloucester.

'Good! He's impressed. Now to put the icing on the cake.' Euphemia thought triumphantly.

"I Echo as leader of Force Z, bestow this knightmare as a gift to you General Alfonso de Pinto. Ten Sutherlands are also being brought here as an apology for this drama I've created."

"...I accept your apology. Just don't pull this stunt again please. An old warrior like myself can only take so many surprises. Even its an angel come to save us from satan himself, my heart simply can't take the excitement." General Pinto said with a smile showing off his pearly white teeth and causing Euphemia to blush at being compared to an angel.

Hoffman and Henry had to force themselves to contain their laughter at Euphemia's reaction. A few sounds did escape though causing Euphemia to hurriedly turn attention back to the map on the table.

"Where were we? Oh yes...In this city we'll need every soldier you have to rise up and tie down the Britannians long while we strike the government buildings. The Vice-roy and Baron Hood should be captured alive if possible."

"We can surely cause trouble for them, especially with the weapons you've given us and using yourself. But why take them alive?" General Pinto said not understanding.

'We're more a like then I care to admit Lelouch. Horrible as it is I don't regret what's going to happen...what I want to happen. What I _need_.' Euphemia thought with an involuntary shudder.

"They'll be made example's of. Its important that my people take custody of them to show Britannia what its in for. I trust that's ok with you."

General Pinto looked to the file full of papers, the flash drive, his men coming to after being knocked out by Echo's forces and finally to the _gift_ Echo had given them.

"That won't be a problem at all. I'll make sure you have your prisoners Echo. Captain Schroeder!"

The still stunned Captain sitting on the floor where she'd fallen rose in one fluid moment to attention like her reflexes breaking through a stupor.

"Yes General?"

"Get the contents of that flash drive to Paris immediately, transmit on a secure connection and mark everything we send as urgent. The Brits are in for a nasty surprise."

"Ye...Yes sir. Right away." The captain said before snatching the flash drive and dashing off to complete her task.

"And as for you Echo." General Pinto said turning to Euphemia.

"Portugal cannot thank you enough, I cannot thank you enough. When the attack commences we shall stand with you as I'm sure the Union will. May the people of Europe taste freedom once more with our actions." The General stated gratefully with confidence in every word he spoke.

The General offered his hand in the universal gesture of agreement.

"No General. The People of the World will taste freedom. Portugal is but the first step." Euphemia declared in a voice like steel. She grasped General Pinto's hand and shook it enthusiastically.

**AN: Thanks for the patience and I'm sorry for this update not arriving as quickly as promised (ducks to avoid incoming sticks, stones and random kitchen sink). I'd like to thank Asukaforever92, Addie Card and Nalya for jumping on the bandwagon and subscribing to Echo.**

**Additionally I've received a great deal of beta work from MS-16 Z Jager, you've really helped moved the story along and helped me ditch some bad story idea's early on.**

**Thanks again Asukaforever92 for giving me feedback on future chapter idea's dealing with multiverse. Things will get interesting now for sure.**

**Originally I was going to have Euphie in a suite of her own but inspiration has eluded me. If anyone has idea's for Echo's suite please send your idea's my way. Also what should happen to Lord Hood when Euphemia get her hands on him?**

**THANKS FOR READING AND PLEASE REVIEW. **


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